The Humor of Mistaken Identity
by Aariah
Summary: Allen Walker, Age somewhere around 20: Occupation- Batista, Sex: Female Kanda Yuu, Age 23 Occupation- Student. Sex: Male Lavi Bookman, Age 22, Occupation- Putting Allen Walker and Kanda Yuu in the same vicinity as much as humanly possible. One catch, no one can tell just what the hell is in Allen Walker's pants, or just who the hell Allen Walker is.
1. Chapter 1

It was easier to pass as a guy, safer even. Especially when you didn't have any chest to speak of, like an actual C cup, a freaking 3 inch difference from the ribcage. A sports bra basically gets rid of any sign her sex, not that she much cared, she was in for more of that androgynous beauty deal, it worked for her.

Its sort of messed up that the world live in its dangerous to live as a woman, that they didn't have the same opportunities or the same treatment. And working in the modern day, well you needed all the advantages you could get.

Running a hand through her snowy white hair, she glances in the mirror and winces. The scar was an angry red today, sometimes it faded to a less angry more subdued red that was more easily covered, but the angry red took forever to cover properly and she was screwed if she got wet.

Taking out the liquid latex (Amazing stuff it was, really) she carefully smoothes out the jagged scar tissue, taking care to make it look completely natural. Then she takes several of her foundations, and dabs it on until that unfortunate bit was completely covered, and it looked like there was nothing there at all.

She honestly wishes she were more normal at times, not having to spend a good hour and a half every morning getting ready for work and having to wear gloves at all times. She didn't even know just how old was, though it was probably somewhere around 20 now, Mana had guessed her around 7 when he picked her up off the street.

She can remember it now even.

_"Put me the fuck down you asshole!" Kicking and screaming, shaggy red brown hair flying she kicked the man who was dragging her along. Was she gonna end up like that one bitch Mary, stuck with some nonce kiddy fiddler and left on the side of the street dead. _

_"I'm not going to hurt you, its not a good idea for a kid like you to stay out there. You know what could happen., hate to have that happen. You have a name?" The man had set her on a park bench, and crouches in front of her._

_"How am I gonna know you ain't some fucking pedo or something?" She puffs her cheeks, fully prepared to bring out the knife she filched. _

_"Well you'll just have to trust me eh? I work in a circus, so we'll be traveling a lot if you want to come along."The man smiles broadly, she wants to trust him._

_"I dun have a name. Why me mister, why don't ya get someun that ain't broken." She knew why her parents didn't want her, she knew why they left her when she was a little toddling thing out on the street. She knew why she had to keep her hand covered at all times. Why did the mister choose her._

_"Because you have spirit to you. And a deformity isn't something to be ashamed of, may I see?"_

From then on Mana had been her dad, he saw her attachment to posing as a male and gave her a name. And also, he gave her pretty much all the faith in humanity she had, her old guardian was a piece of shit most of the time. He could be useful though, when forging documents was needed since well, she kind of had to live under the radar. Completely.

* * *

_There's this person, well I say person because they are one of those odd creatures that you can't decide just what they are but they are attractive anyhow? They have this white hair that pisses me the fuck off, every single thing they do pisses me off. I want to bash their head in repeatedly. And fuck, they work at the one place near my place that makes decent tea. What's worse is they, that infuriating person by the name of Allen, is the sole person who can make said tea correctly._

_Fuck my life. _

Yuu Kanda clicks the post button annoyed. Yes, he was complaining over tumblr. Again. It was that asshole's fault though, pissing him off so much. Ugh, it was all so horrible and he hated it. And said person was behind the counter, within eyesight.  
Kanda couldn't quite figure out just what the person was, though it really wasn't his business. But society has that thing of wanting to put a dick or a vagina on a person. They moved with the air of a fighter, but weren't quite muscled in the way men usually were.

This Allen person, they had hips. And a thin tiny waist and slight shoulders, whipcord muscle. And it drove Kanda insane. His years of training and athletic activities had conditioned him into knowing what the layout must be under a person's clothes. To train his eye on the way they walked, and assess them as to whether or not they would be a difficult opponent.

"Say, have you always had your head stuck so far up your arse that you are forced to talk through your nose, or is this just a some of the time thing." Fuck. Fuck fuck fuck. Allen was sitting across of him, chin resting on a gloved hand and staring at him idly.

"What the fuck are you doing. Thought you were working." Kanda glares at the other, which makes Allen smirk.

"I'm on break fuckhead. Also I figured I'd sit and have a chat from my apparent number one patron." Allen twirls a lock of pure white hair around his finger, staring at Kanda expectantly. "Now might I ask your name? Its only polite."

"Kanda." The reply is short and to the point, and he busies himself at typing the paper due for class. He was highly tempted to break the table on that bean sprout's head.

"Wouldn't do that if I were you, you'll miss. And the name is Allen Walker, since you were so kind as to give me yours." Allen's odd remark makes Kanda looks straight up, into a smirking face and amused silver grey eyes.

It was pretty apparent from the look Kanda was giving her that she had annoyed the man, and he was likely to turn violent. Shame, he was so pretty, from the name alone she could deduce he was of Japanese decent, and his hair. Goodness, many would pay millions to have that sort of hair, long, straight and thick. It probably fell down to his waist.

He was annoying, absolutely infuriating, constantly glaring at her behind the counter when he was tapping away at his laptop. "Are you just going to sit there?" Kanda asks suddenly.

"Why yes, I am planning on sitting here until you murder me in my seat or leave the café. Simple as that." This guy was fun to play with, or rather he pissed Allen off to the point where pissing him off just as much was very much high on her list of objectives.

"Yo Yuu what's up with the dude?" A loud redhead pops his head through the door, and scrambles around tables and chairs to rest his head atop Kanda's head.

"Fucking hell Lavi its Kanda. Kanda." Kanda's eyes grow even more murderous; Allen liked this Lavi guy, so she smiled widely at him. He winks back mischievously with the single eye not covered by a black patch.

"I'm Allen, the maker of this arse's favorite tea apparently." The words coming out of her mouth makes Kanda stand sharply and he attempts to take her up by the collar. "Also dear Kanda, I told you not to try anything funny." Slowly she takes Kanda's wrist and pulls it down from her neck. Damn this boy was strong, not as strong as her but a good bit more than most.

This ass. Was stronger than him. What the ever loving fuck was this, no one was fucking stronger than him much less a fucking runt with a pretty face. And Lavi was laughing. Oh hell no.

"Yu you should've seen the look on your face! God that was priceless, priceless. Lavi was highly tempted to fall over himself laughing, so he did. Allen, that dude was a gem, absolute gem, and the look on Kanda's face when he lowered his arm without effort, well that was a once in a lifetime deal.

"Well gentlemen, I have a job that needs getting back to, also Kanda you ought to close your mouth, you're going to let unpleasant things in." Bowing Allen takes his leave, ducking under a counter. Kanda snaps his mouth shut and looks like he's about to chase after the guy. Lavi was torn between asking for Allen's number and holding Kanda back, he swung around either way so anything was fine by him. But Kanda had that sort of possessive look to his eye, like 'You touch this person I will kill you a thousand deaths this is the person I want to hate fuck yes'

Typical Kanda, mistaking infatuation with hate, oh this was going to be an interesting show indeed.

* * *

So I betrayed myself. I'm posting a chapter of a thing that isn't finished, while working on two other fanfictions. I just needed this thing played out because well, female Allen posing as a don't quite know what they are but god are they hot person is oddly entertaining. As is an infatuated Kanda.

Let us see how this plays out, I shall try to update once a week, and I fully urge you to yell at me over tumblr if I fail to do so.  
Thanks guys for reading!  
And please review, its like the food of my soul :)


	2. Chapter 2

_Remember that asshole I was talking about? Well the person who constantly decides to consider himself my friend has apparently decided to take on him as well. So every freaking day, of every fucking week its "Allen this and Allen that" God please kill me_

_That fucking person is driving me insane, everything about them. Every fucking thing. They even have a fucking British accent. Their personality is the most disgusting thing ever, all optimistic and shit. I can't stand people like him. They never keep any of their promises. _

There, perfect- clicking the missing piece in place, tinkering with the bit of golden metal Allen nearly cries with happiness. She was not going to die after all; she finally fixed Timcampy, after he got eaten by a cat. More specifically Allen's cat, Moshi.

This really didn't need to be happen as often as it does, really. You'd think both Moshi and Tim would have learned by now, but no. They insisted on fighting and Moshi always ends up eating the freaking golem. In addition, her bank account was running low, since Cross had seen it fit to dump her with another load of bills.

"I should be used to this by now shouldn't I Tim?" The golem gives a squeak and flies away, probably in search of entertainment. There wasn't anything else to do really, her job paid minimum wage and she frankly couldn't live on that. At all.

Slipping off her work clothes, she stares at herself in her full length mirror for a moment before pulling on the tightest pair of jeans she owned. And white knee high boots, a button up, a blazer and a new neck ribbon- the crowd didn't care if it was a dude or chick, as long as they were easy on the eyes.

Stepping out of her tiny apartment, she locks the door. She also sets Tim on guard just in case, wasn't exactly the safest area of town. It'd been nearly a month since the confrontation with Kanda. He grudgingly returned everyday for his flipping tea, then proceeded to glare at Allen the entire time he was there. It drove Allen insane, she wanted to snap his neck in half. Apparently, Lavi decided that he was to be her new best friend of sorts, so she ended up seeing him even outside of work. He also apparently hadn't realized that she was female, so Allen supposed her disguise of sorts was working out perfectly.

The bar was full, as usual. Its one of those seedier places that often get raided by police for drugs. But it suited her needs, she weaves through the crowd towards the basement where the games were held in attempt to keep them out of public sight since they were technically illegal. She notes a certain redhead following her, and curses internally. Damn fine training if she didn't notice. And what on earth was he doing here anyway?

Slipping a bill to the guard (she was a regular) she descends anyway, what's the use in stopping the guy. "I know you're there Lavi."

"How'd you see me, I thought my stalking skills were ultra perfect?" Lavi whines, still following Allen. He didn't quite know what the dude was doing someplace like this, he only came because the booze was cheap. And Allen, he had move purposely through the crowd like he knew what he was doing, and Lavi took him for innocent.

"Easy. Also you probably don't want to follow me down here." Allen winces at the sound of a fight above, and walks down faster. The basement of the club was a sprawling affair, with nooks and crannies that went often unkept and fluorescent lights that flickered constantly.

"Why are you down here then?" Lavi is honestly curious at this point, he had no idea what was going through that kid's wide innocent eyes.

"You really think I can get by on a part time job only?" Allen smirks before she ducks into the playing room. There were three games going, and one that was just starting. She manages to slip herself into the latter.

Lavi should probably find Kanda. Because this was fucking hilarious. But apparently he didn't need to, as he was punched in the gut. "Why are you down here fucking rabbit, you know what happens if the police catch you?" Whispering angrily at the redhead Kanda covers his worry with violence like usual.

"I followed Allen down here, don't get mad at me Yuu." Lavi whispers back, since well, Allen was sort of making the players at his table mad. Like they were probably going to end up murdering the guy now.

"Fucking hell, what is that beansprout doing here." Kanda glances over at the table, seeing that Allen was in fact here and that Allen was in fact playing poker.

"Playing poker and kicking ass, what does it look like?" There, one of the men finally snapped. Gathering bills Allen tucks them quickly in his shirt, and ducks under the man's punch with ease. Hurrying from the room he scrambles farther into the basement, he would have a few minutes before being found.

"You might want to leave now Lavi, oh nice to see you as well Kanda." She was being utterly sarcastic, the guy had run over to his buddies and if she didn't get out of the club soon she'd have to use force- something she didn't like doing often. She curses internally as she sees both men were following her, Kanda and Lavi rather. Why does that idiot of all people need to be here?

There's a window she's used before to get out, in a bathroom on the ground floor. She couldn't use that now though, with those two following her, God she was going to have to pick the lock.

Allen had gotten himself into some shit, Kanda could see that clearly- he also realized with him and Lavi following him it didn't make it any better. Surprisingly Allen doesn't head towards the stairs, but farther back into the basement where a cellar door lay locked, or well it looked locked, but it opened easily under Allen's fingers.

"Come on, you're going to get caught." Allen's harsh whisper brings Kanda back to the present – he clambers through the door, as does Lavi. Allen bringing up the rear locks it behind him. Standing up he dusts off his pants and places both hands on his hips. "Are you guys insane?"

"You're one to talk." Kanda bites out the words, and Allen glares at him. She was highly tempted to beat the shit out of him so that is exactly what she attempts to do, only after one punch Lavi manages to pull her back.

"How well did you do that made that dude so mad?" Lavi winces at the look on Kanda's face, he was going to have a very noticeable black eye.

"Won't say out here, you guys really are clueless aren't you? Which of you lives closest?" Allen glances around, hopefully they wouldn't have to go to her place, or well she was rather sure Lavi would insist on following her.

"We live on the other side of town." Great. Wonderful, fantastic. But nothing she could exactly do, so she strides off in the direction of her humble abode, and as she guessed Kanda and Lavi were both following her.

"Say Allen, where're we going?" Kanda was about ready to punch the rabbit in the face, Allen also. This was a fabulous situation that Lavi had gotten them all into, if only he hadn't decided they needed to go to the shadiest place in the area for shits and giggles, then decides to follow fucking beansprout down to the illegal games the club ran.

"Lavi, may I ask why you are still following me?" Allen sounds tired, and crosses the street quickly.

"Because you're fun and a friend- we are friends right?" Honestly, Lavi just wants to sit down. Because they had sort of taken the bus over, and stayed too late so couldn't get home until morning. This side of town was still rather busy even though it was after ten, and Allen stops at a rundown apartment building. He leads them towards the back of the building quickly, glancing about with every few steps.

"Just be quiet until we get inside." Allen stops in front of a door and opens it, ushering the two men inside. "Don't touch anything, you guys hungry?"  
"Yes, please." Lavi honestly wasn't expecting beansprout to live in this sort of area; he worked downtown for god's sake, why here where there was a good thirty minute bus ride to work? Allen's apartment was clean, extremely so. There wasn't much furniture, or a TV. There was a beat up keyboard propped up on some crates in a corner though. "Now will you tell us how much you earned?"

Allen just throws a wad of bills on the table, and Lavi gapes. "I haven't counted it yet. So I can't say." Walking to a room in the back Allen shuts the door behind her; it had been a rather good night as earnings go. However, she was exhausted and had company. She could at least put on something a bit more comfortable, she settles on a long sleeved black tee and sweats.

Kanda was confused. In addition, he was mad, extremely mad. At everything, the stacks of bills on the table, the stupid redhead sitting beside him and that fucking beansprout. Said beansprout had just walked out of what Kanda could only assume to be his bedroom door and had apparently changed. Why the fuck was he still wearing gloves?

"Here, you guys can snack on this I guess or we can order out. I know a place that's probably still open. Its only 10:30." Allen pulls his slightly shaggy hair into a pony, apparently in an attempt to get it out of his face since it was nearly to his shoulders after setting out some chips.

"I don't care either way." Lavi grins broadly and snags some of the chips. Allen only sighs and puts his head in his hands. A picture in a corner catches Kanda's eye, and he notes to examine it further when he got up.

The liquid latex was starting to get irritating, like really. She couldn't really help if those two saw her scar, they'd just have to deal. Walking over to the bathroom she washes it all away, and replaces her gloves. She hated it all, she really did. Today was just her day, her work phone buzzes

"Hey Allen we have a job for you." Lenalee Lee's voice sounds from the other end.

Yes, it was totally her day. "When do I need head in?" She knew she was due to check in; that was a part of the rules to the order. They found you work and you were at their disposal, especially if you were an exorcist.

"Tomorrow is fine, before 3 in the afternoon. Brother won't be awake before then anyway, you know him." Komui, Lenalee's brother was odd. And rather horrible at times, or at least he did things that made everyone cringe.

"Say Lena, you think I'm going to have to move again after this?" The last job had left Allen unable to stay in her previous place due to various reasons.

"Nope, Allen you're in luck this time around."

Kanda can hear Allen talking in the bathroom, probably on the phone. He had taken the chance to look at the picture that caught his eye. A man dressed as a clown and a kid with a scowl so foul that it made Kanda wince. On further examination, he recognizes the fucking beansprout of all people, what the fuck happened to their hair between then and now? It was brown in the picture.

Then the door opens. "That's me and my dad." The voice takes Kanda by surprise; he hadn't noticed him get off the phone.

"Hey Allen, what's up with your face?" Lavi, normally energetic, is for once rather subdued.

"Scarring, happened in an accident when I was young. I usually cover it up." Neither Lavi or Kanda couldn't blame him for covering it, though they wondered how covering such a thing was actually possible. A deep read pentagram sat above his eyebrow, and the scarring went down over his eyelid all the way to his lower cheek. It obviously wasn't an accident, something like that just didn't happen on accident ever.

Allen sits down on the kitchen counter easily "You guys going to stay the night?"

Both Kanda and Lavi nod and Allen grins widely. "In that case Kanda, care to spar?" Kanda stares at her blankly, and Allen grins wider. She might as well put all this annoyance to use, and she needed a warm up for was bound to go down tomorrow.

Kanda simply stands, a glint in his dark eyes. Allen hops off the counter and leads the two men into the hall. A friend of the order owned the place, and at her request gave her the key to the training room that occupied the basement. The main reason she chose this place over others, it was easier to get her practice in regularly.

Kanda was happy, extremely happy in an annoyed sort of way. The beansprout had challenged him himself. He could finally beat his ass. Kanda was surprised when Allen led him to yet another basement though, this one clearly soundproof and holding various things, some that would make others blank (and made him drool internally) and others that no one would look twice at. Weights, fitness machines and the like really.

Allen tosses him a wooden staff, and Kanda tests the weight. It would do, he notices Lavi retreat to the corner. Smirking Kanda adjusts his stance and fights.

The only thought that Lavi was able to pick out of his head is how those two people were utterly suited to each other in every single way. And that Allen Walker was more than a match for Yuu Kanda, and that Lavi Bookman had never seen anything like the fight taking place in front of him. It was utterly fantastic, and he could barely tell just what they were doing they were moving so fast.

Yes, these two, they were perfect for each other, and their constant bickering and fighting was absolutely hilarious. Lavi Bookman decided right then and there that if he couldn't get these two together in the near future the world would probably end in disappointment.

* * *

I've been writing like crazy these past two days, I actually have the two chapters after this done already. Its going to start getting a little darker and incorporating the exorcists and such, I thought I should probably warn you guys. I wasn't exactly happy with this chapter, but I hoped you liked it!  
Also thank you so, so much to all who reviewed, favorited and followed this already, I was in shock really at how many of you guys liked it. Thank you again-

Aariah out :3


	3. Chapter 3

To those who asked, I made Allen stronger than Kanda due to the fact that she trains for multiple forms of combat- and basically her life depends on how strong and good at fighting she is. At this point Kanda trains to train- no motivation.  
Also Allen in canon is better in combat than Kanda believe it or not. (Check the wiki if you must)  
I am so happy that you guys like this, and sorry if Kanda seems a bit OCC at times, I haven't quite mastered writing him as of yet (It will improve as the story goes on hopefully)

Also, I am so sorry for the rapid fire updates, I have horrible self restraint. So after this it will be updated once a week on friday. (god i am so horrible at this so sorry guys its been forever and i'm excited)

Work was annoying, not that job at the café- but her actual work. The branch of the order she reported to was luckily situated in this very city- other times she would get orders over secure video call.

It was a large building, looking much like a high-end office building. The door attendant nodded and opened the door for her, and she strode up to the counter and asked for Lenalee. Since well, Lenalee was the one to ask for if you wanted something since Komui forgot about the little things half the time.

"Ah yes Allen I'm glad you're here. I can't give you an accurate assessment on just what level this particular nasty is at, but its rather bad. I'm sorry to send you alone, you really should have a partner but we are so short on exorcists right now." Komui glances down at the report before him, taking a sip from the half-cold mug of coffee in his hand.

"It's okay Komui, I'm sure I'll manage just fine." The shortage was starting to worry her really, so few recruits that were qualified resulted in stalemate.

"This particular Akuma is currently occupying an abandoned warehouse on your side of town. I can't say how long it's been there, but I urge you to be extremely cautious." Allen thought she probably knew where Komui was talking about, the place that she'd heard whispers about.

Moreover, why would you let it run rampant to the point where it was an actual physical entity with all of the nearby spirits under its control? "I believe I know the place, the one people have been saying is haunted right?" She would have to bring out the things she never bothered with for this, her coat for one.

"That would be it. Take care Allen, we sent Marie but well, but it went badly. Please don't get yourself killed, we're counting on you." That was a comforting thought, if this one was so strong as to put Marie out of commission well, that wasn't very good at all.

Taking count of her inventory Allen winces. She had brought home some things from the order, but she was trying to be cautious for this mission, and not just because Komui had told her to. It was dangerous and she wasn't too keen on dying, especially since for the first time in a while she had actual friends not connected to her work. Even if one of those people was essentially the most fucking annoying and infuriating person she had ever met in her entire life. And she had met a lot of people thank you very much.

The akuma was going to be high level this time around, any armor besides her coat was going to be utterly useless. (Unless it was made specially to work against akuma it'd fall apart at the first blow) Leaning towards flexibility she takes out the shirt she'd cut one arm off, and well she also cut it so it fell so it just covered her bra.

She needed to be able to activate her innocence without ruining her clothing after all. Honestly it was more comfortable, pairing it with a pair of thick leggings (Made by the order, much stronger than the regular kind.) and her knee high boots she grabs one last thing, a duffle filled with little things she'd probably need at one point and another, and both her cell phones, work and play.

Just in case.

"Hey Kanda I heard there's this thing haunting this warehouse on the edge of town. Wanna check it out?" Lavi plops down on the chair across from Kanda, who was in an even fouler mood than usual. Damn beansprout was out today so the person who does a shitty job with his tea had made it today and it tasted goddamn awful.

"Are you that eager to die or are you just that stupid?" Messing with haunted places wasn't a good idea. In the event that the thing haunting was a demon, that was a guaranteed death, and from what his foster father had told him that's how his birth parents had died.

"Yuu, can we at least check it out, just a peek?" Lavi wasn't quite sure why he felt the need to go himself. He just needed to know he supposed, though it really made little sense.

"Che. You're an idiot and will probably get us killed you know that right?" Lavi took that as an agreement and grinned broadly, narrowly missing the punch aimed at his one good eye.

_"MANA!" The creature turns to look at Allen, its pale body taller than Mana had been and its huge mouth glittering with rows and rows of needle-like teeth, dripping with blood. The next thing Allen knew she was bleeding, and couldn't see out of her left eye. Her arm, that horrible horrible arm that the doctors Mana had taken her said was probably the product of radiation poisoning, its started growing, moving on its own towards the beast. _

_The next thing she knew a man with flame like hair was standing above her. He was talking, something about having to finish it. But what was she supposed to finish. Finally after sighing the man sits her up and speaks once more. "Kid you have to finish it or it'll come back, just repeat after me okay?" _

_ And she did, with a shaking voice, after running a hand through her hair she finds clumps of it coming out, brown falling to the ground. When it was over she heard a shriek that turned her blood cold. "You did good. Say, want to be an exorcist?"_

_"What, what was that thing. God it ate Mana, Mana…" She finally lets herself cry, the man just stares at her before answering. _

_"That thing was an Akuma, or a demon if you want to say that. Sometimes stupid people call them out of hell. They kill until exorcists get to them, and perform the exorcism. Which you just did I might add." Pulling her up so that she was standing the man continues. "I'm Cross. And I'll ask again, do you want to be an exorcist?" _

That was her first step on this path, what else could she do? Her father was dead; she was a deformed freak passing off as a boy because she was too much a coward to call herself a girl. And she couldn't let the akuma kill more people, she couldn't let others go through that same pain.

All of her hair fell out, and when it finally grew back, it grew a snowy white. The scarring on her face would never leave Cross had told her, it was the mark of the akuma and those specific marks never went away. She had had to split herself into two, the person that Mana would have been proud of and the person deep inside that only came out sometimes. The person that was able to cheat at poker so easily, who was able to go into brothels and not flinch- the person who only came out when she needed it to.

She didn't quite know which was the real her, she supposed it was a cross between the two. She tried to be someone like Mana, a man who had picked a foulmouthed, deformed orphan off the street. She would stand here, fighting until the world was free, or that is what she constantly told herself.

The akuma was higher level than she thought possible if she didn't know better- it reminded her so much of that day. It stood there, in front of her with its vaguely humanoid face sporting a large mouth full of teeth, claws dripping with her blood. She blocks out its words, because once she thought about what it was saying it would have control over her and more people would die, and she couldn't bear to have that happen.

Akuma were more terrifying than the church ever portrayed, they didn't have horns, they had disfigured bodies and looked close enough to a human to make it utterly terrifying. Limbs were twisted backward, but still fully functional- each deferred really. Especially when given enough power to form a physical body, it only took so much and they would be able to leave the area in which they had been summoned and bound. Then cities disappeared without a trace as nothing could stop such a thing, and it killed faster than the eye could see.

Shit. This wasn't going well, at all. Her innocence, it wasn't activating properly, this was trouble. Jumping quickly out of the way of the next attack she thinks rapidly, then one more time pushes it to activate. Thank God above, it finally does, it hurts like hell though, her innocence and the rest of her body were going to fall apart at this rate.

Firing one blast after another at the horrifyingly real and solid creature she winces at each shriek it makes. People are so stupid, so incredibly stupid. Finally, the body collapses into dust and she drops to the ground. She needed to complete the exorcism; otherwise it'd just form another body after it recovered. She was losing too much blood; she had let herself get hurt because she underestimated the thing.

Shakily she stands once more and places a bloodied finger on the crystal cross embedded into her hand, and calls and calls for the strength. Then she recites out of memory all the necessary words she had been forced to memorize in the case she couldn't get to the book. The latin felt familiar on her tongue, with her last words she heard a final shriek, so loud and piercing that it left her ears ringing for several minutes.

Dropping to the floor her last words before passing out are in this order, shit, and what on earth is going to happen to me?

Lavi had really gotten them into something; even as they walked the mile left to the building, they could hear a shriek that turned Kanda's blood cold. However, Lavi just laughed and dragged him along though he really wanted to turn back. There was a motorcycle parked in front of the building, a large worn down thing that was half falling apart. It was getting late, of course Lavi would want to go after twilight, he really was suicidal wasn't he?

Cautiously they duck through the door, Kanda couldn't feel the evil he did when his parents were slaughtered- but you couldn't be too sure These things weren't human, and were unpredictable. Maybe it was just haunted, or the rumors had all been lies. Lavi walks ahead, out of Kanda's sight.

"Oh my fucking god Kanda get your ass over here now!" Lavi calls from somewhere ahead, his voice panicked. It took a lot to shake Lavi up to that extent, so Kanda runs. What he sees turns his blood cold, and sends a large flash of murderous rage through his body like lightning.


	4. Chapter 4

It was beansprout, lying on the floor in an unnatural position in a pool of his own blood. Lavi's yell had apparently roused him slightly, and he tries to open his eyes. "Lavi, Kanda is that you?" So beansprout was still alive, inexplicably a rush of relief runs through Kanda. He still hated the guy, but no one deserves to die like that.  
"Yes, what on earth happened to you fuckhead?" Kanda was angry, extremely angry, angry because he was worried and angry at the fact that he was actually worried about the guy. What the fuck was the beansprout doing here, out of all places bleeding all over the ground?

"Later. One of you, bike, go to order- get Lenalee, tell her innocence damaged, bad." Apparently, she wasn't supposed to die today, or at least the God she served needed her for a bit longer, Lavi hesitates for a moment before turning to Kanda.

"I can't fight as well as you, I'll go. You stay with Allen. Allen where is the order?" Lavi is dead serious, something that only happens on the rarest of occasions.

"Main road off waterfront, largest building can't miss." Everything was wavering; she could feel herself descending into the black again, one last thing. "Kanda, bag, stop bleeding." Lavi sprints out the door and onto the bike, while Kanda looks around for the bag Allen had told him to look for. It looked like the thing had been tossed roughly against the wall. But there was a first aid kit of sorts inside, and a couple of other things Kanda had no idea how to use and puzzled him slightly.

Fuck, there was a lot of blood, too much blood. What the fuck was beansprout doing, getting their body slashed up like that? Yes, slashed- those were claw marks. Pressing down on the worse of the wounds Kanda notices something odd about his arm. It was red, and that sure as hell wasn't blood. It was also so horribly disfigured that the only reason it could be recognized as an arm was that it was in the same shape and the same size as one.

"Lenalee, I need Lenalee." Lavi had hurried into the building as fast as manners would dictate, he brings his request to the woman behind the counter, a shorter woman with dark green hair cut to frame her face.

"I'm Lenalee, what happened?" The woman stands abruptly.

"Allen, said innocence is damaged bad?" Lavi still didn't quite understand the words Allen had told him to repeat, but he couldn't exactly argue.

Her face pales, and drags a very confused and worried Lavi through one of the doors. "Reever get Komui, level 4!" That phrase makes even less sense, but the room that they had just entered erupts like a hive of hornets. "Do you know if Allen completed the mission?" This was directed at Lavi, all Lavi can really do is shrug his shoulders.

"This is bad," Looking around wildly she sees a man entering the room, a large case in his hands. "Come on, we have to get to the van, you'll have to show us exactly where Allen is, you didn't leave her alone did you?"

"No I didn't leave Allen alone, Kanda is with them." Her? Allen was a her? This new revelation shook the already extremely shaken Lavi even more. He kept the thought in his head as a very frantic Lenalee pushed him into a large van and she jumps in behind him.

"Sorry about that, you don't have any idea what happened do you?" She smiles tightly, her fists clenched in her lap.

"I don't know anything, Allen's a girl?" Lavi finally asks the question that had been burning in his mind for the past few seconds.

"I let that slip didn't I? Don't tell anyone, please dear lord don't." Sighing Lenalee shakes her head. "You're that one guy Allen's been talking about, not the infuriating one but the person who suddenly decided that they were going to be her best friend, Right?"

Lavi nods his head, he hadn't been aware that Allen had talked about him. "Yes, I guess. The infuriating one would be Kanda, who is with him- her right now. Lavi at your service." Allen, she sure did do a good job at hiding things, her sex especially. It jarred him thinking about just how little he really knew about Allen.

"You're the first friends she's had for a while you know. She was left on the streets as a toddler; it was safer to pass as male than be a little girl. She doesn't exactly feel safe if people know that particular secret if she doesn't know that they do, so I suggest once we get her stabilized and such you tell her- not around Kanda though." Lenalee smiles again, sadly.

"Lenalee, we're almost there, so get the stretcher ready" A voice from the driver's seat sounds and Lenalee gestures for Lavi to stand, as soon as the van stops she wheels the stretcher out of the back.

"Lavi show me where you found her." The man that must be Komui still has the case with him, and Lavi rushes into the building. A worried Kanda was walking in circles around the unconscious Allen. On hearing the car parking loudly outside he sighs, knowing it was probably Lavi coming back.  
"Oh my god." Those were the first words out of Lenalee's mouth when she saw Allen. The only other exorcists she had seen in this bad of condition were dead, the wounds an akuma gave were filled with poison and no one could last long with them in that number.

"Did you try to stop the bleeding?" Komui asks suddenly, leaning over Allen.

"Yes." Kanda had actually managed to stop most of it, to his immense relief. He knew how much blood you could loose and be fine and how much would kill you, Allen had been in the second stage.

"Thank God, he'd be gone by now if you didn't." Komui gestures for Kanda to help him lift Allen's body on top of the stretcher, Kanda notes that the beansprout is a lot heavier than he looks. As they straightened his body, Allen's eyes flutter slightly.

"Akuma gone." Seeing Komui above her she lets herself feel true relief, she was going to live. But she needed to tell him as much, since he couldn't tell himself. Her voice is so faint that she can barely hear it herself, but Komui apparently catches the words.

"Thank you Allen, I'm going to put you under now okay? You're in pretty bad shape." Komui takes a syringe and flicks it before inserting it into Allen's normal arm.

Allen had been in surgery for the past three hours, they hadn't even brought him to a hospital. That Lenalee chick was apparently near tears, the name rings a bell in Kanda's head but he can't quite recall where its from.

"You're Kanda right?" Lenalee needed to thank the man; she had already thanked Lavi after all. She didn't particularly want her best friend dying on her, Allen was like a sister. The man named Kanda nods slightly. "Thank you for staying with Allen, I don't know what I'd do without him, he's like a brother to me." There, she didn't slip up this time around. How Allen would be proud of her.

"What the fuck was the beansprout doing there?" There, the question she had been sort of dreading, she sees Lavi lean closer from a chair nearby.

"Well, its sort of a complicated thing. The order, it sends exorcists after Akuma, you call them demons." Twiddling her thumbs, she thinks a moment before continuing. "We're short on exorcists, that thing nearly killed another of our best exorcists, we had to send Allen alone."

"So you kill them." Kanda was actually taking this well considering; it gave a reason as to why the hell the beansprout was so fucking strong and good at fighting. It also made up for the fact that his tea the day before had been terrible, demons were worse than bad tea.

"Not exactly, you can't actually kill them. You can only send them back where they came from; this particular akuma was extremely strong, like it had a physical body and everything. Usually they have to possess something." Lenalee feels like crying, they shouldn't have sent her alone, Allen was good but that was a suicide mission.

"Allen is stabilized, we need to get him out of that apartment though Lenalee, its not exactly safe to keep him in a place like that." Komui sits in a chair near Lenalee having entered the room unnoticed, and elaborates; his voice makes Lenalee jump slightly. "I've been planning on moving him for a while, a house the order had bought and were renovating. I think I can finally get him moved after this incident though."

"Brother how's Allen doing, like is he going to be okay?" Lenalee's words don't particularly take either Kanda or Lavi by surprise, there was a slight resemblance between the two.

"He's going to be fine, by some miracle. He won't be able to do much for a while, but I imagine knowing Allen he'll be up on his feet again in a few days. No broken bones or anything, just a lot of nasty claw marks to clean and sew up." Allen was stubborn, and didn't much mind pain if there were things to be done, Lenalee knows its been her downfall before. She just cared about others more than she cared for herself, so she put them first.

She hurt, a lot. Like every part of her body was throbbing with pain sort of hurt, if she hadn't had worse before she probably wouldn't have been able to move. "Don't you dare move Allen Walker until Komui gets in here or as soon as you recover I will beat your ass." Lenalee, after opening her eyes Allen could see her sitting in a chair in the corner of the room.

"You're an idiot by the way, and those friends of yours are worried sick about you. Even Kanda, though he won't say he is." Lenalee smiles at Allen brightly. "He's funny you know, so is Lavi. I don't know why you and Kanda fight so much though, he's a grump but not that bad."

"You have no idea. How long was I out for?" Allen remembers all the times that their verbal arguments escaladed to full out fistfights that Lavi had to pull Allen out of (mainly because pulling Allen out was safer than pulling Kanda, Kanda would turn on you and beat your ass too)

"A while, Lavi came and got us around nine the night before last, you got out of surgery around midnight that night. Its 8 in the morning right now in case you wanted to know, brother had you under all yesterday." Grinning widely Lenalee hops off her chair and gives Allen an air hug as to not hurt her any more than she already was. "Why didn't you leave? You could've just come back and had me come along, then there would have been two of us, why didn't you?"

"It was, well it was actually terrifying. Frankly, I was afraid if I left, it would leave the warehouse and I wouldn't be able to find it again. I just barely was able to get rid of it." Allen shudders slightly at the thought of that particular akuma, the rows and rows of teeth and sickly blue skin, and at the similarities to that one night so long ago.

"Oh wow... How on earth are they getting this strong, do you think the Noah are back?" This worried Lenalee, if in fact that the Noah were in fact back the order would have more work than they could handle. They were running so low on exorcists, having only seven in presence spread around the world.

"I don't know- I hope not. You should try to get Kanda to join, he's good." Allen really hated to admit it, but Kanda was very, extremely good at fighting, though he carried himself like he was more used to using a weapon than going without. Still, he was decent at hand to hand as well.

"Oh really, how good is good?" Lenalee raises an eyebrow.

"He couldn't beat me but he was pretty close." This makes Lenalee gape a bit; Allen was built for her work. She had the best track record out of the order with that sort of thing due to her mentor and the life she lived before coming to the order, though no one knew all or even most of the details except Allen- and she wasn't talking. Allen Walker was a mystery even to those who knew her best.

"I'll talk to brother." Really, saying that just as said brother waltzed into the room might've not been the best idea, since well, that led said brother to hugging Lenalee excessively.

"What did my wonderful sister wish to talk to me about hm?" Komui said. Komui Lee was possibly the bane of Lenalee Lee's social life. Mainly because he was an extremely doting older brother in his forties, and was under the impression that no man was good enough for his sister and chased them off as soon as they showed an interest.

"Oh, Allen was saying that Kanda would be a good candidate for the entry program." Lenalee expertly maneuvers her way out of her brother's hold while speaking, to the vast amusement of Allen who starts laughing.

"I'll take that into consideration. Oh, yes Allen, good to see you awake. You young lady, are extremely lucky to be alive. Also, you will no longer be staying in that horrible apartment." Komui's voice takes on that authoritative tone that had won him the head position in the building. His transformation from doting older brother with a slight sister complex to serious head of the science division never stopped puzzling Allen and Lenalee.

"I thought you said no moving?" Her face growing pale she manages to keep her voice steady. Allen really didn't want to move, it was bad enough having traveled all of her youth, but not really having somewhere solid to come back to was wearing on her.

"Well this isn't a far away move, so you don't need to worry. Its actually a ten minute walk away from the order here, a nice little house suited to your needs perfectly. Of course, this would be the last move- I can assure you that. You'll still be traveling and such, but we'll keep you stationed here in the long run." Komui's words actually came as a surprise to Allen. The order simply didn't give you housing unless you lived in the building- or if you were extremely important to the order.

Allen couldn't say that she was the latter at all, she was only an exorcist that nearly got herself killed the other night, and was only alive because her friends came to the building shortly after. "Really? You really didn't need to do that you know. I'm fine in that apartment, it's not like I have much."

"Allen, you've more than earned it. So no arguing, the higher ups agreed so it's all yours now, and it will be for a long while yet. It was paid in full a while back so you'll be fine. You'll just have to buy the furniture, though I don't think that will be a problem with your uh, talents." Allen knew exactly as to what Komui was referring.

The fact that Allen could rake in thousands in a single night seemed to entertain Komui to no end, and he tended to bring it up when it suited his interest, which unfortunately was often. "Oh." That's all Allen could really say, since well-, she was rather shocked. Surely someone else would make better use out of it than her?

"Uh, Komui how long do I need to stay in this bed? I have a cat and a golem at home that require my attention." She'd left food for Moshi before she had left for the warehouse but she was rather worried about both if she had to stay more than a few days.

"You're healing up well it seems, that innocence of yours purged all the poison out of your body within minutes of it entering, which is why you were in such bad shape- it takes a toll on your body you know Allen. You basically have a bunch of very nasty cuts and bruises, so you'll probably be able to go home if you really, really wanted to tomorrow. Not that I advise it, I spent too much time last night putting that arm of yours back together since the nerves were damaged." Komui would rather her stay at least a week, but Allen hated imposing on people and would insist on working even while injured, so it'd be best for her to go home when she was up for it.

Why did she need to be like that really? She couldn't stand other's taking care of her because the care was something she'd prefer to go to others. God knows she and Lenalee had argued about it enough.

"The Black Order is an organization that takes over the exorcisms that the church can't handle. After a certain point an Akuma- or a demon if you prefer- gains enough power that it becomes extremely dangerous for anyone to handle that isn't specially trained and is an accommodator for something we call innocence." Sitting before Komui were both Lavi and Kanda, he figured he might as well test both of them since they were both here.

"Why can't the exorcists from the church take care of it?" Lavi asks intently, this was a well of new information and he was determined to squeeze out every last drop of water he could.

"They would get killed to put it simply. If the akuma is powerful enough it goes past a simple possession, it starts killing to gain more power. The akuma Allen fought last night was extremely powerful; it had actually gained a physical form. That however is rarer, more often you'll find them using the body of a dead human or animal." Komui didn't voice that Allen rightly shouldn't have been able to exorcise the akuma last night by herself, but had managed anyhow due to her innocence keeping her alive and her stubbornness.

"So you're asking us to join this order thing. What's in it for us?" Kanda wasn't too keen on rushing into this after seeing the beansprout last night.

"Depends on if you are an accommodator or not. Really there isn't much in it at all, its pretty much thankless dangerous work. Do you want to join in with us idiots?" Might as well put it bluntly and tell the truth right out.

"We will." Lavi speaks for both, and Kanda gives a death glare that both Lavi and Komui ignore completely. "And how is Allen doing? You wouldn't tell us earlier."

"Allen is in stable condition and is likely to be out and about by tomorrow at the latest knowing him." Komui still wasn't too thrilled about that. More like if he didn't know it would do more harm than good he would force Allen to stay here longer.

"Wait how the hell? He was bleeding out on the fucking floor the night before last, how is he going to be up and about tomorrow?" Kanda really couldn't fathom just how Allen could recover like that- not that he was one to speak. He was known for healing extremely quickly.

"Allen is extremely stubborn, and that innocence of his puts him back together at an unnatural rate. Now before we can do anything with you two we need to test you to see if you are accommodators." Standing Komui leads them through the large building into the basement, where a large locked door waited.

"What's with the door, and what's innocence." Kanda was already wary after what happened to the beansprout last night, and how is he going to be up and about tomorrow? Most of his body was slashed up.

"That's not something I am at liberty to talk about unless you prove to be an accommodator, I'm sorry. Well come on you two." Taking the ring of keys from his pocket Komui unlocks the three locks one by one. The door opens with a large metallic clatter.

Kanda and Lavi weren't really expecting anything like the scene beyond the door. Truthfully, they were hoping for something a bit more exciting, not a room filled with fog. "Go on, get in there you two." Komui pushes them in and closes the door behind him.

Lavi strides further into the room, but Kanda stays put by the door. There was absolutely no reason to move farther into a room he couldn't see the far wall of. Lavi was being an idiot, fucking putting that huge ass IQ to waste. You don't do that in an unfamiliar area. The fog grows even thicker around Kanda, he can't see his fingertips. Breathing it was like breathing fire, a fire that ran through his entire body.

He wanted to scream, it hurt damn it. Like that fucking fog was actually full of nails that he was being forced to swallow. It felt like he was suspended there, he couldn't move and the fog kept growing thicker and thicker- he pushes a wave of panic down. You can't panic, it'll cloud your mind and you won't be able to think straight.

Suddenly everything cleared, and glancing down at his wrists, he found two black tattoos. Lavi had apparently been lucky- the fog hadn't forced its way into his body but had formed itself into a hammer that plopped down into his hands.

"Well it looks like God is with us today. Two new accommodators, Hevlaska will explain the other things to you." Komui said from his place leaning on the wall by the door.

So he had to be an exorcist now, he guessed he should blame it on Allen, but really he blamed Lavi most of all. Lavi and his crazy ideas, his manipulative nature that he hides behind a mischievous eye- yes it was his fucking fault.

It was his fucking fault that they had to talk to that woman who told them that their innocence were weapons. It was his fault that the fucking innocence made a katana out of his blood. It was his fault. And Allen Fucking Walker's fault for getting them all into this.

Because Allen was the one of the only full exorcists in the area he'd be acting as their fucking mentor for half the time. Which pissed Kanda off to no end, Allen Walker annoyed the fuck out of him and Kanda frankly couldn't read him, Kanda couldn't fucking predict his movements and it pissed him off and put him off edge whenever the beansprout was around.

"Yo Allen." Looking up from the keyboard Lenalee had brought out (To keep Allen in bed and for the most part still) Allen smiles at the redhead.

"Hey Lavi, sorry about the other night, also thank you for helping me out there, I really appreciate it." Letting her fingers glide over the keys she picks out a faint tune, which rather surprised Lavi. He hadn't known that she could play, but his mind goes back to the keyboard in her apartment and he mentally berates himself.

"So Lenalee told me to tell you that I sort of know about you being a girl, also I'm not going to tell Kanda so don't worry." Allen glances up at Lavi from her place on the bed, her fingers still on the keys of the keyboard resting on her lap.

"How'd you find out?" She'd been so good at hiding it, she had dodged all the questions without suspicion- how had he found out?

"Lenalee let it slip when she was worried sick about you." Oh, so it was Lena, she wouldn't have let it slip unless it was an accident.

"As long as you don't tell anyone." Lavi was safe for the most part; he knew when to keep his mouth shut- something Allen had noticed over the weeks they'd been friends. She looks idly out of the window and starts a new song, one that had played in her mind ever since she could remember. It was familiar, like a blanket that kept you safe and warm.

Piano was her escape, from the moment she had laid eyes on one when traveling with Mana. He taught her to read the music, and the proper way to play. She caught on quickly to Mana's joy; he said it reminded him of his brother Neah who had passed away years before. He also taught her the notes to the song, the one that had played in her mind each day she lived in that half-demolished building.

The song that led her out of her nightmares of demons and needles, a make believe Earl who ruled the world. The last note fades into silence, and Allen finally meets Lavi's eyes once more. He simply stood and walked out of the room, his face unreadable.

"Allen played the lullaby for you, didn't she?" Lenalee watched the redhead stare at the wall, a far off look on his face. It struck her again just how perfect he was, despite the patch on his eye.

"Is that what's it called?" She understood the tone in Lavi's voice. The lullaby, it was like a lament, sad and heart wrenchingly beautiful. It was like Allen, when she let her guard down completely, however rare that was.

"That's what I've always called it. Allen refuses to name it." Lenalee can still remember the first time she heard it, she was sixteen at the time- Allen had just arrived after being dumped by Cross. She had wandered the halls- Lenalee hadn't known she wasn't a boy at the time (she only found out when Allen asked her in a panic why she was bleeding out of her vagina) until Allen found the grand piano tucked into a corner. Then she sat there and played, the song echoing throughout the order.

Komui had thought it was a ghost, and had sent the others out searching for it while he was tinkering with yet another robot. But they found Allen instead, head bowed down in concentration as her fingers flew across the keys.

"I feel like I've heard it before." Lavi keeps his voice quiet, holding the notes in his mind. Everything about it seemed to come from some far off place.

"I think it happens for everyone Lavi." Laying a hand on his shoulder the two hear the song start up again from Allen's room, not being able to see the quiet tears dripping from Allen's eyes down to the piano.

Mana, she missed him so much. The days he spent teaching her what it was to be loved and a human- the games he'd watch her play with the acrobats. They traveled so often, from city to city across England. He took her to doctors to try to fix her arm, but the doctors all refused to have anything to do with it, saying it was impossible.

The nightmares haunted her, the demon's screeches as it came for her. Then Mana, he had pushed her out of the way and he had died instead. She was supposed to have died that day, not Mana. It was her fault, she couldn't save him.

The sound of the door slamming closed breaks her from her memories, and sees Kanda glowering at her from the end of the bed.

"You are a fucking shithead. What the fuck were you doing there alone, and what the fuck is wrong with your arm beansprout?" Kanda demands angrily.

"I was fighting and got too close. Also I have no idea, its been like that for as long as I can remember jackass." He was pissing her off, to the extreme. The way that he looked down on her with his eyes full of anger, his clenched fists- neither of them noticed the door open slightly then close again. Or the fact that Lenalee and Lavi were whispering furiously.

"Oh my god they are going to start, good thing Allen is confined to bed otherwise they'll brawl." Lavi wanted to laugh, he really did. He knew for a fact that the reason Kanda hated Allen so much was because Kanda was extremely attracted to Allen and didn't realize it.  
"Is it always like this?" Lenalee is trying to look through the small window set into the door without anyone noticing, though it was rather doubtful considering that they both were wearing glares that could kill and were arguing angrily.

"Usually its worse, you know the deal, bad words and fistfights. Its oddly entertaining." It was, though Lavi usually had to break them up at some point due to the fact that he didn't want to take people to the hospital.

"You weren't kidding. This is actually really adorable- don't tell Allen I said that. She'd kill me, well not really but she'd make me pay for her lunch." Lavi cringes, he'd seen just how much Allen could eat in a sitting and that was guaranteed to clean out most anyone's wallet. How the woman stayed so thin was a mystery.

They were screaming at each other at this point, obstinacies about lineage and dietary habits. It was really quite amazing, Lenalee hadn't seen Allen break down this much in the entire time she's known her, and break down meaning her accent coming back full force and the slang she picked up on the street slipping off her tongue. She guessed the only reason the argument was still verbal was because of the fact that Allen was in the infirmary bed covered in stitches.

"Seriously I half expect them to either kill each other or start kissing." Lavi said shaking his head.

"I know what you mean, how often are they like this?" Lenalee asked, her brow furrowed. She found herself agreeing with Lavi's statement, observing it all on the outside it looked like a long suffering couple arguing after one of them did something stupid.

"Pretty much at least once every time we hang out, though usually it doesn't get this far." Lavi grins, and Lenalee grins back at him. "I've been trying to put them in the same room as much as humanly possible actually, mainly because I find it hilarious."

"You are evil. Absolutely evil, seriously are you playing matchmaker or something?" asks Lenalee.

"Yes. Exactly that. Kanda and Allen would kill me if they found out, like they would both come after me screaming and waving around sharp objects. Not something I figure to be a good thing, so I'd appreciate if you'd not tell." Lavi said, he remembered on one occasion that nearly happened, only he jumped out the window and made a run for it. If he remembered correctly, it had something to do with suggesting that they sleep together.

"Actually I think I might help." Replied Lenalee, watching the two who were now not talking to each other but were each seated, Allen glaring at Kanda while tapping out a song on the keyboard. (That really is the best way to keep Allen occupied, though she had had to steal her house key and grab it from her apartment after feeding the cat.)

Lavi didn't say anything, grinning he dragged her down the hall (Lenalee furiously hoped Komui didn't see, she really didn't want Lavi subjected to the horrors her brother would cook up) and into the dining hall, where he sat at one of the tables. "So here's the thing, you're a trained exorcist too right?" Lavi asked, at Lenalee's nod he continues, "So you're going to be my mentor, and since its not a good idea to have more than one if you are trying to cram as much into a person's head as possible- Allen is going to be Kanda's."

* * *

Yeah I know the update is two days early, I'm just not going to be able to have access to the internet on friday through the weekend and am going to be super, super busy tomorrow.

I apologize if its going to quickly, or if anyone seems OOC.

And thank you to all the people who reviewed or followed or favorited, it always makes me smile seeing that notification in my inbox

Aariah out~


	5. Chapter 5

"Hey Komui, am I clear to leave now?" Allen's question was rather expected; she'd been fidgeting most of the morning and had already stayed in the infirmary for three days. (Counting the full day she had been put under in an attempt to actually get her to rest properly.)

"Allen, you're all clear to go. But do me a favor and take care of yourself, Lenalee will give you the things for your new place, whenever you're ready go ahead and move in." Komui takes a sip from his coffee and continues, "We really can't lose you Allen, also you'll be mentoring Kanda until he's ready to go on his own- Lena is taking care of Lavi."  
Was the world really against her, making her in charge of fucking Kanda? Really, she fucking hated the guy and she had to be his mentor. Which means that he would have to spend a large amount of time in her new house, (She still wasn't used to the idea of actually having a house of her own, she makes a note to begin packing up when she got back home.) because of the training room that would no doubt be occupying a very large basement. There were also all the technical things she'd need to teach him, exorcism wasn't just fighting akuma. It was something that had to perfected, otherwise it could go completely wrong. It often did anyway, despite the perfection.

"Do I really have to be Kanda's mentor Komui, can't Lena and I switch please?" Allen pleads.

"I'm sorry Allen, I know how horribly you two get along, but we really need you to get him ready as quickly as you can- and Lenalee can't do that. I've heard rumors of the Noah and I'm afraid the rumors are from trusted people- we need all the help we can get." Komui's statement fills Allen with dread; she didn't quite know why she had such a strong aversion to the Noah beyond the normal reasons. But she did, and they terrified her.

"Hey Lavi, what're you doing here?" Allen was rather surprised when she opened the door to her apartment to find that both Lavi and Kanda were already inside, and had apparently made themselves comfortable judging from the state of the kitchen.

"We are here, Allen dearest- to help you move!" Lavi's admission makes Kanda groan loudly from his place on the couch. (He was apparently petting Moshi, to Moshi's great delight)

Lavi's words also made Allen, very, very frightened. "Just how long have you been in here?" she asks.

"A few hours, not too long- hope you don't mind but I got hungry. Also I brought a pickup. For moving purposes." Lavi looks sheepishly towards the trashed kitchen.

"You know I could probably get most of the stuff over in two trips right? The all the furniture except the bed came with the place." She didn't voice that the bed was just an air mattress on the floor, it really wasn't their business.

Lavi gapes, and glances around a bit, and closes his mouth with a snap. "But I do need to pick up furniture eventually if you want to help with that." This makes the wilted Lavi perk back up and a very annoyed (but contented somehow? Allen would have never taken him to be a cat person) Kanda roll his eyes.

"What do you sleep on anyway, since you apparently can fit it on that wreck of a car?" Kanda asks.

"Well if you are so curious go look for yourself." Kanda doesn't take her up on her offer but apparently Lavi was just as curious. He opens the door to her bedroom and just stares, which causes Kanda to stand (much to Moshi's disappointment, though he was carrying her still so she didn't voice that displeasure) and look as well.

"You sleep on a fucking air mattress. With a blanket. On the floor. You don't even have more than one fucking pillow?" Kanda is the one to regain his voice and composure first, being that Lavi was still staring offended at her tiny room.

"Why yes. Its actually a much better bed than I've had most of my life, so I am perfectly content." Allen replies sarcastically- it was actually the best bed she's had if you don't count the bed in the infirmary or the bed she slept when she first ended up at the black order. Most of the time she spent with Cross she had had to sleep on the floor, with Mana they were in a circus for goodness sake.

"Come on fuckface." Kanda drags Allen (who winces internally as he had grabbed her newly repaired left arm) out of the apartment, which Lavi is left to lock up and down to the car, glaring and tapping a foot until a frazzled Lavi stumbles out of the apartment building.  
Kanda doesn't say anything, just puts his hand out for the keys that Lavi reluctantly gives him, and just waits for the other two to get into the truck before climbing in himself and starting up the engine. Luckily, it had two rows of seating; Allen really didn't want to sit between Kanda and Lavi.

Kanda pulls to a stop in the mall parking lot, and leads them into a department store. "Fucking get shit. It's on me and the rabbit." Allen glances at Lavi, who shrugs.

"Our families are rich, adopted and stuff. Adopted Asian buddies!" Throwing an arm around the very annoyed Kanda, Lavi continues in a dramatic whisper. "Or the AAB for short you know."

Allen just stares at them blankly, trying to process everything. Lavi was Asian? He really didn't look it but Allen wasn't one to question that sort of thing. Groaning loudly in a rather exaggerated manner Kanda drags the bewildered Allen through the store, having her pick out things at every stop. Allen was really starting to piss him off. How on earth can you fucking live like that?

Kanda had seen firsthand how much money the beansprout could rake in, what happened to it so that the man couldn't even afford decent bedding?

It was also starting to get annoying, for beansprout when given the option would choose out things in black, red, and silver and on one occasion a comforter that was fucking clown themed.

When all was said and done the back of the pickup was nearly filled, since Walker didn't have anything. He'd pay for his own fucking bed, Kanda wasn't fronting that bill too.

"Hey Allen, where does all that money you get gambling go?" Lavi asks suddenly, Kanda tries to pretend he doesn't care as much as he does. The fucking beansprout didn't make any sense whatsoever, but he wasn't one to stoop as low as to actually ask him why. You don't ask things like that to people you hate.

"You've heard of Cross right?" At Lavi's nod Allen continues, "Well Cross was pretty much the human form of demon. He was amazing at his job but a pretty horrible person all said and told. He rakes up thousands in debts, which he then dumps on me."  
Oh. So the fucking beansprout was paying off this Cross guy's debts eh? "Just how much does he owe right now?" Lavi was on a roll today, getting all the questions in Kanda's head out for him. Kanda makes a note to not beat him up unless there was a very good reason for the rest of the day.

"Eh, well before I had to deal with that akuma he sent another bill, I think it was 15,000? Its already paid off but it left my bank account dry. I don't know, there've been some for upwards of 70,000. That's why I got good at cheating." The figures Allen list out make even Kanda gape. What the fuck was Cross doing throwing around that much money- that was more than some people made in a year!

"Why do you deal with that Allen?" Lavi asks, his voice soft. Lavi really didn't understand, he knew Allen was too nice- he also knew Allen could hold his own though.

"I have literally no documentation whatsoever, no birth certificate, no legal name- nothing. Cross takes care of the fake documents for me, if I pay off his debts. Its not like I'm not used to it, back when I was his apprentice he'd throw me to his debt collectors as bait." Allen replies.

Both men in the car are struck at just how little they know about Allen Walker. Lavi more so than Kanda, how did a gutter rat get here, dressed and living like a man because she didn't feel safe as a woman? Even though Lenalee had told him she still considers herself female, she just doesn't feel at all safe being one. And everyone humored her because what could they do? Hurt someone who's been shit on her entire life more?

"Hey Allen, who the fuck are you? You can't tell us this shit you're saying is true." There, its out. Kanda's words take both Lavi and Allen by surprise. Kanda was just too curious, and had to open his big fucking mouth. God he hated Allen, he hated him so fucking much but he couldn't fucking get him out of his mind.

"I don't know." Managing to keep her head level and tone civil Allen continues. "It's true, I can tell you that. But I don't know anything, I was on the streets until I turned seven, when Mana adopted me. Age twelve Mana died and Cross took me in as an apprentice, then he dumped me off at the order when I was 15, been moving around ever since."

No wonder she didn't have anything in her house except the essentials, Allen Walker had just outlined the major events in her life with a dry emotionless voice that told of horrors Lavi couldn't even imagine. No one said a word as Lavi and Allen walked up to her apartment (Kanda staying in the car because he didn't trust the area and he was entirely too pissed at everything to even think about leaving the car.)

Allen, opening the door to the apartment ushers Lavi through the door. "Since you made a mess of the kitchen you get to clean it up." She commands. Allen herself, went back to her room straight off, and brought out several collapsed boxes. "Clean dishes go here, there is newspaper underneath the sink, food goes here." She says, indicating with a hand to different boxes.

"Okay. Fair enough beansprout." Lavi responds, ruffling Allen's hair.

"So are you going to call me that now too? You know my name. Its Allen. N." Allen says, a scowl on her face.

"Yup." Lavi states proudly, jumping out of Allen's reach. Then, before Allen could get any more angry he gets around to cleaning and packing up the kitchen.

She hadn't been kidding, there was hardly anything, and odd assortment of mismatched dinnerware and worn cooking utensils.

In reality, most of Allen's belongings consisted of clothing. And boots. Damn that woman had a little collection going, white, black, silver, brown- even a pair of red ones. And they weren't just those boots that went up to the ankle, no some of these were the clear up past your knees sort of boots that must have cost a fortune. (Based off the fact that they were actually very, very good quality.)

She also wouldn't let Lavi touch the large bin containing her footwear. Saying something along the line that she didn't trust him with it and that Lavi would ruin them. They both took turns taking out the boxes and bags, lugging them out to near where Kanda had parked. Lastly Allen runs in and grabs Moshi and a flying metal ball she called Timcampy.

"That it or are we going to be here forever?" Kanda is really getting annoyed, he's confused as well. Fucking beansprout, what is with him? Tragic back story and all but (Kanda himself had been adopted after his parents were killed, and had been living rather happily with a wealthy family ever since) there was something Kanda couldn't place. Everything the man did annoyed him to some degree, but there was also some part fascination behind his gaze. He could laugh so easily, and lie with just as much effort. It was a mystery.

"That's it arsehole." replied Allen, she was tired, she wanted to sleep and eat something but she was in the middle of a freaking move and wouldn't even have a couch to crash on, not that she minded the floor. She didn't really think her friends would let her sleep on that air mattress anymore, they'd said they would go out for furniture in a few days (after Allen had the chance to collect enough funds) but she didn't think they'd mind at least one night on a freaking air mattress.

Lavi notes with amusement that she didn't dump the bin full of footwear in the pickup bed, instead setting it on the seat beside her. Everyone was silent as Kanda drove, glaring at the road of course, towards Allen's new house. (How he had gotten the address neither Lavi nor Allen could guess.)

Her new home wasn't exactly a small house, two floors with three bedrooms. The basement had, as she had been expecting converted into a training room. It was distinctly odd thinking about it, a house to herself. A normal sized house, a house painted a dull cream color, with a tree situated in front of the porch. She even had a small backyard; though what she'd do with it she hadn't the faintest clue.

Lavi had gotten excited for some reason, saying it was near his place (and Kanda's, though he didn't think telling that Allen that would be a good idea.) He also didn't think that telling her that the house across the street and two houses down was his and Kanda's. (They were roommates, since their families got tired of them trashing the family homes and this place was closer to the collage.)

The two men help Allen carry her things inside, and then watched her wander around aimlessly since she didn't quite know what to do with the space. Finally after some thought she chose which room would be hers and carefully places her bin of shoes in the closet. (Really, it was sort of hilarious to Lavi just how protective she was of those shoes. Though after thinking just how much they must have cost and the sheer number of them he kept his mouth shut.)

Yuu Kanda was confused, utterly and completely confused. And confusion made him angry, the unknown made him angry. It was a habitual sort of thing, developed after years and years and cemented by an already hotheaded and pessimistic personality.

He was angry because the beansprout's new house was on the same street as his; in fact it was less than a five minute walk away. He was angry at the fact that the fucking pea brained man couldn't make up his mind, wandering in circles around the house. If it hadn't been for the beansprout's cat he probably would have throttled the guy.

He liked cats though, cats didn't hide behind masks, but they were less straightforward than dogs. They were discreet, took their time before deciding on whether or not they liked a person, something that Kanda saw as good. There wasn't any use in keeping animals around you that would make friends with any old person, despite personality.

Allen Walker's cat was actually a fabulous cat, though Kanda would never tell him as much. A beautiful white and black spotted little girl, according to Allen her name was Moshi. Why the fuck the beansprout had named a cat after food, Kanda had no idea.

He also wondered why Allen Walker continued to work as an exorcist despite all of it, if it was Kanda he would've just quit by now. It was stressful, and got you hurt for what? Why did you fucking exorcize the demons, for what reason did it make it worth it? Yes, they killed people, but people died every single day, what was a person to be murdered by an akuma compared to that?

Why did Allen fucking Walker fight like this, why did he live like this? Why did he bother fighting things that most people didn't even believe existed? And why did Kanda let himself get caught up in all of this shit, the fighting demons and ridding the world of 'evil'.

"Beansprout, why do you fight them?" He asks, since obviously the fucking rabbit wasn't going to ask for him.

"Akuma? Because I want to save people- I'd rather it was me that got hurt than someone else killed and eaten." Allen responds while putting away food.

So that was it. Saving other people, typical. And it disgusted Kanda, where was self preservation? Why did he do that people he'd never met before? Why did he give up all semblance of a normal life for this?

"Hey Allen, I'm gonna head home now. Since you don't have a bed yet you can crash on the couch at our place. Yuu will walk you over." Lavi says from the door, so the fucking rabbit was going to leave him here. He still hasn't gotten it through his thick skull that Kanda was to be called Kanda and not fucking Yuu. Again, that was typical of him, as was the fact that Allen was apparently invited to spend the night. Lavi also seemed to live for putting Kanda and beansprout in the same room, probably because he found the fighting entertaining.

It annoyed Kanda, because the reason they fought so much was because, hell he didn't even know. That happy go lucky face that Allen put on for the world annoyed him, the fact that he was able to help people he'd never met without questioning anything irked him. He

couldn't do that, he didn't want to. He wanted to stay alive, it didn't matter if someone else got killed because they were stupid, it wasn't his problem and it didn't bother him at all.

_She could feel her heart against her chest, it hurt so much. Each breath felt like fire against her throat, but she couldn't stop now. She couldn't, so she kept going. They surrounded her, trying to take her under their control. But they couldn't, they already killed number 5, her best friend.  
They killed her and it was their fault! It was their fault that she was the last one, it was their fault she was all alone and was going to die here. A scream breaks through her lips, a shrill desperate scream…_

"Fuck beansprout, wake up. Some of us are trying to fucking sleep." Kanda grows, shaking Allen awake. He had woken up to his screaming like a fucking little girl. And he wouldn't fucking stop, he'd been here for ten minutes trying to get him to get the fuck awake but he kept screaming and thrashing around.  
Lavi was absolutely useless, useless. Fucking rabbit just kept standing there in the doorway just staring at the whole thing.

Suddenly Allen's eyes open, and he sits up quickly knocking his head into Kanda's in the process.

Eyes glazing over with anger, Kanda manages to speak. "I. Am. Going. To. Fucking. Kill YOU!" He screams.

Lavi quickly intercepts Kanda on his warpath. "Yuu it was an accident no need to get violent okie dokie?" He says while patting Allen's head protectively.

"Tch. Why the fuck were you screaming?" Kanda asks, a scowl on his face.

"Nothing." Allen replies, trying to smile but failing. She felt like crying, and her heart and head heart. She didn't even remember what the nightmare was about, her head wouldn't let her remember.

"Well don't do it again or I will get Mugen and I will use it on you." Kanda quips before turning heel and walking back to his bedroom. Allen watches him, rather fascinated with his hair as it wasn't put up for once and apparently went past his butt.

"Like what you see beansprout?" Lavi whispers to Allen, a broad smile on his face. Allen thought it odd, he had obviously just gotten out of bed but he was still wearing that eye patch of his.

"No. Don't even think about that, god no!" Burying her head into the pillow she had been using she feels her face heat up. It wasn't her fault Kanda was attractive god damn it! She hated him, he was the absolute worse person she had ever had the misfortune of meeting.

"Mmhmm. I think the beansprout is lying. Don't worry, he thinks you're cute so you may have a chance at that prickly piece'o ass." Lavi smirks, an odd sight with his eye patch, messy hair and outfit consisting solely of his boxers.

"Lavi, you know what? Shut up, shut up and never talk again. Please, do the world a favor." Allen pleads, her face growing even warmer.

"Nah, don't think I will. The world loves me too much and would sorely miss my sparkling wit." Lavi replies, his smirk widening. Allen was just too cute, really.

"What are you looking for anyways beansprout?" Lavi asks, goofing off on the cart as they walked down the aisles of the hardware store.

"Lavi feet on the floor for the love of god please." Allen pleads, this wasn't going her way at all. Kanda was somewhere arguing with a poor sales associate over something (she'd stopped paying attention after fifteen minutes)

"But its funnn, don't be a poop beansprout." Lavi whines.

"Lavi. Stop please or I will go and get Kanda over here and make you stop. Please, I really don't want to pay damages. And we are looking for paint rollers, and brushes. Then we'll head over to the paint counter." Allen replies, highly tempted to bury her head in her hands, she would but it'd probably smear her makeup and that wouldn't be a good thing at all.

"Fine." Reluctantly Lavi places his feet back on the ground. He figured he should humor Allen at least a little, he suspected she hadn't really slept much at all since that incident where she woke up the house by screaming. And that had been two days ago.

She picks out her colors, warm tones for the downstairs she said and cooler for the up. Lavi really would have rather her pick out fun colors, orange or bright blue perhaps, but she looked too tired to argue with him.

She had already dragged them all through Ikea for her furniture, and through multiple thrift stores. This was, according to her the last stop. Which was probably a good thing, because Yuu was running thin on patience- Lavi had a feeling a lot of it had to do with little Allen.

"Hey guys want to help me paint?" Allen asks; a smile on her face. She and Lenalee had already bribed the guys into taking the furniture in (Kanda wasn't happy about that, he'd had to make three trips back and forth to Ikea and back)

"Yuu can do it. I have stuff to do- you know a life and friends and wonderful woman to woo- you know the thing?" Lavi drawls, leaning on the side of the pickup.

"I'm not going to fucking help paint. Do it yourself beansprout." Kanda growls.

"My name is Allen. ALLEN. We've known each other what, two months now? At least? Why can't you remember that or is there something wrong with your brain?" Allen retorts.

"I only take note of the names of people who matter. You don't." Kanda smirks.  
That was the last fucking straw. Last fucking straw and Kanda Yuu was going to pay. Reaching into that secret place inside she keeps her other self, the one who gambles, cheats and has sloppy make outs with strangers, she slips inside letting that part of her take over. "You fucking dick. Worthless pathetic excuse of a fucking testicle." Reaching to the can of paint she had just opened Allen takes the stirring stick and flicks the paint off it. Directly in Kanda's hair.

Lavi thought he was going to die. Like seriously, he thought he was going to die. And Jesus Christ Allen was scary when she wanted to be. Flicking paint at Kanda, did she have a death sentence? Kanda was wearing a glare that had actually sent people into a dead faint before, though Allen didn't look phased at all.

"You fucking-" Kanda makes a motion with his wrist and out pops his innocence. He called it Mugen of all things.

At this development Allen goes on warpath. Sort of, Lavi was highly tempted to kill himself right now because he never, ever wanted to see the look on her face again. It was fucking terrifying, he had to keep reasoning with himself. But he couldn't move, because god damn it this was going to get interesting.

"Deactivate it right. Now." She states, a simple smile on her face that nearly chilled even Kanda to the bone.

"You've gone fucked up Yuu." Lavi whispers to no one in particular.

Allen walks down the steps of her porch, and takes the blade of Mugen in her left hand carefully- not touching the razor sharp edges. "You will never, I repeat never pull that shit again. Innocence is for demons, don't even think about pulling it on your comrades dumbass." Allen's voice is soft, and held authority that Lavi never knew she even could command. And apparently neither did Kanda, as he deactivates Mugen right away and stalks away, picking up the bucket of paint and taking it inside.

Allen sighed, exhausted. Switching herself like that always took a lot out of her, but she reaches back and brings back her regular self. The one who usually fronts, it scared her at times. Sometimes she couldn't find it, she'd be there drifting in between different selves until it finally was ready to come back.

She never told anyone about this, alternating between different Allen Walkers when she needed to. She didn't say a word, that the person who comes out to play poker isn't the same one who works at a coffee shop, and the Allen who played the piano was someone completely different. The one thing that really transferred over was her song, the one Lenalee called a lullaby.  
It was hard, not remembering things a lot. So she took notes, or at least tried to when a different self was up front. Sometimes she could remember, most of the time she could remember what went on when another self was up front. But the times she couldn't… She represses a shudder.

It scared her, so she didn't say anything. Because things that scare you, scare you to the bone could be used against you. You can't trust anyone with that sort of thing, just like she couldn't trust people with her sex. Distrust disguised by trust is how she got through life, because she wanted to trust, she really did. Allen just couldn't, she couldn't on the level that people wanted her to. She couldn't put something like that in someone else's hands, they'd throw her away too.

That's sort of how life goes. Finally, she finds her usual self, and coaxes her back to the front carefully. There, all in place, ready to go deal with Kanda again at least.

* * *

I am so, so sorry if this skips around too much for you guys :(

Also, I think I'm going to be incorporating some darker themes, if there is a chance it might trigger any of you I will put a warning at the beginning of the chapter, then a line where the triggering part should end. I'll also do a brief clear cut as I can summery of that part at the end so you can catch the grasp of what happened if reading it was too much for you guys.

Also, I want to thank everyone who has reviewed so far- I love them. And feel free to say if anyone is too OOC or something (Though I'm writing Allen in a very specific way based off of things that happen sooner or later)

And again, thank you guys so, so, so, so much- and please review!

Aariah out~~


	6. Chapter 6

_A little girl plays with bones on the floor of a room filled with demons. She's used to them now, she's learned how to fight them off so she won't be eaten, even if she's only three. They don't like her, she can tell. They don't like her, and she despises them for they are the centerpiece of her tiny existence.  
She also hates the bones, they belonged to her friend, but she's three and has nothing else to play with. And they take her mind off the fact that her stomach hurts, its so empty she can hardly move. But she must, so she does. She fights off each demon that comes too close thinking she is finally weak enough to kill. She won't ever be one of the others, she'll live and get out of this hell. She won't be eaten, she won't have her hard bits spit out in that disgusting slime. _

_She's aware that three year olds aren't supposed to be so advanced in thought, they aren't supposed to be smart yet. Their brains are only just developing; she knows that from the books Road and Tyki read her_

_Road was mean, but she taught her because that's what the Earl wanted. The Earl, she hated the Earl. Tyki was sometimes nice though, he carried her up on his shoulders when they would walk down the hall. _

_"Number 14, it's time." Road is standing in behind the locked door, number fourteen can hear her voice so she stands. The demons part as she walks, they know if they attempt to hurt her at this point the Earl will kill them, actually kill them and not send them back to hell. _

_"Number fourteen, you've grown into such a wonderful young lady. I think its time for the final show, let us see if the curtain will fall or not eh?" The Earl was standing above her; she was strapped into the small chair and completely unable to move. She was afraid, so afraid. What would they put into her tiny body this time, would she finally die or would she be broken beyond repair? She tries to hold her song in her head, to wash out the fear and to bring back that make-believe world she had made._

_"Tyki administer the shot now please." Out of the corner of her eye she can see him, the vial of sickly black liquid. She couldn't let this happen, she couldn't. But it was, she felt the needle pierce her left arm. Her entire body goes numb, fighting against the foreign substance. She was so cold, so very cold. But then everything was burning, her arm was burning and she couldn't hold in her screams. In her mind she keeps the song playing, over and over. Because she hurt and it hurt too, but it was okay because the song led her to light even as her tiny little body burned. _

_It was red now, her scarred flesh bubbling and changing. But then something in her burns through the flames, it didn't quite hurt as much anymore. The tang of blood fills her mouth, and she silently sings the words. She never knew what they meant, only she was born knowing each phrase and pause._

_..._

_And the little girl ascended into blissful sleep. Deeply breathing_

_The flames within the ash shine, one by one brighter_

_Emerging, that beloved face even now_

_Suspended above earth, you dream a thousand dreams, dreaming, dreaming… forever trickling down_

_On the night when silver eyes were trembling what came to be born was you, as you shined. As you descend, a hundred million months and years come and gone_

_No matter how many prayers are returned to the earth, I will always continue to pray_

_Oh please, show this child what love is; please give a kiss to her hands you hold._

_..._

_It burned and stopped the change at her shoulder, later when she would look at her hand she would find the crystal cross raised above the deformed flesh, embedded deep in her bone- there wouldn't be any removing it. _

_"This isn't working, she isn't dead but her body won't fully accept the blood. Road have you given her anything that might have contributed to this?" The Earl's voice is stern, and a wave of fear washes over number fourteen but she repeats the words over and over, trying to drown it in song._

_..._

_No matter how many prayers are returned to the earth, I will always continue to pray_

_Oh please, show this child what love is; please give a kiss to her hands you hold._

_..._

_"Perhaps Earl we administer another shot- that might make the difference since she isn't yet dead." Tyki's voice is smooth, and reminds number fourteen of the voices of the demons in the room. The voices that they used when they wanted to control you, to push you under their control. Tyki knew, just like the demons how to use it to his advantage. _

_"Yes, one more shot Tyki, quickly now." Again, the needle pierces her arm, but the blood isn't allowed to spread. Something in her is trying to save her, to keep her human. She has to run now, or she won't make it out of here alive. She concentrates; her newly disfigured arm allows her to break the leather straps while the adults are turned away. She runs, as fast as her little legs will let her, faster than any human would be able to. But it is desperation, and having nothing to lose that carries her away._

_..._

_ On the night when silver eyes were trembling what came to be born was you, as you shined. As you descend, a hundred million months and years come and gone_

_..._

_ The front door is before her, she opens it. This is the first time she's seen the sun, or its the first time that she can remember seeing it. There is a road, so she follows it, tripping occasionally she scrambles back up to her feet. Farther down the road is a city, something she only knows about through books. A door that she instinctively knows is safe stops her. She knocks and knocks, until a woman with kind eyes takes her inside. _

_ Hiding among the children who lived in the empty buildings that were constantly in danger of falling- she was known as Red. Red was mean, even if Red was tiny and only three. Red stole food and clothes like that, Red wasn't ever caught. Ever. She couldn't be._

_..._

_Suspended above earth, you dream a thousand dreams, dreaming, dreaming… forever trickling down_

_..._

_Because number fourteen was gone, her memories locked away in the prison of her mind, only Red remained. Red and her tiny, mean self. Humming along to that song she knew, when no one could hear her. Because she was sad, and lonely and scared. But you have to be mean sometimes, to cover up the hurt_

_... _

_And the little girl ascended into blissful sleep. Deeply breathing…_


	7. Chapter 7

Sauntering into the front room, where Kanda was standing glaring at a can of paint- Allen plops the other by the can already on the floor. "You're an idiot." Kanda mutters under his breath.

"So are you. Lets get started shall we?" Allen says, smiling brightly in the most sarcastic manner she could muster. Which causes Kanda to turn his glare towards Allen, who was very nearly immune to its effects now.

"Che." Kanda knew he was right, his action was rash and beansprout had every right to be pissed. But seriously, fuck the guy. Kanda wasn't stupid, he saw he was seeing red, you don't fucking mess with people in that state. You'll end up beat black and blue best case scenario- with beansprout especially.

He didn't fucking care anymore. Screw it all. Fucking screw it with a screwdriver and shove it up the ass. It was like beansprout was an entirely different person, the look in his eyes and the entire way he carried himself. And frankly, it scared the shit out of Kanda.

It made him realize just how sheltered he'd been his entire life since being adopted. Lavi dragged him to seedy clubs for fun yeah, but on the other hand Allen was one of those people who the police would in fact arrest when raiding said seedy club because Allen would in fact be wiping ass at some card table.

Allen didn't give a shit. He didn't really have a choice based off what Kanda had seen, and Kanda knew deep down he knew absolutely nothing about the brat. And he wasn't quite sure if he wanted it to stay that way or if he'd like to trade in his sweet, sweet ignorance for what was very likely to be absolute hell.

"You do the living room, I don't think I can particularly trust you with the kitchen." Allen says smugly, shit fuck that guy. Kanda attempts to lunge but thinks better of it after remembering his paint splattered hair. "You do know how to paint right?" He adds as an afterthought.

At Kanda's nod Allen lets out the first genuine smile that Kanda had seen in a while. He did in fact know how to tell the difference, in the time he had spent studying Allen's face. The light in his odd eyes that reminded Kanda of the color of steel, or the slight lilt to his lips and tightened muscles.

Running up the stairs she brings down her speakers, one of the few indulgences she's allowed herself, that and her boots really. Taking out her fun phone she flicks through her playlist, finally deciding on one that was suitable to the task ahead.

Marina and the Diamonds blasts through the house loudly, and Allen finds herself humming along. While paint is rolled on the wall she finds herself singing, her husky alto somehow complimenting Marina's voice.

Suddenly another voice joins in, a tenor- sweet and clear. Allen realizes with a start its Kanda, singing along from the other room. She nearly snorts, sudden laughter has the habit of doing that to a person. But still, peering around the doorframe and seeing Kanda, Kanda of all people, singing? It was comical.

And rather sweet if she thought about it too much, which she did. The fucking man, seriously the nerve of him. Crouching over the tin, pouring in paint, his face blank and his mouth moving with words coming out.

Then he notices her laughter, and stops to her dismay. "Tell the rabbit and I'll fucking kill you." He says.

"I'm good. Also, figured it be good blackmail material sooner or later." Allen replies. "You play any instruments?"

"Fuck off." Kanda mutters, then as an afterthought he adds in, "the violin." Which causes Allen to stare, and to bend over laughing. She might have died if Kanda hadn't lunged with murderous intent.

All of this led to this particular and rather compromising position, somehow Kanda had gotten Allen pinned to the floor underneath him and god it was difficult to maintain control. And then, and then Allen fucking stuck his tongue out like a six year old.

And then Allen, with her thin wiry body, wiggles out of underneath Kanda and sits on his back with a plop. Which makes Kanda collapse because goddamn she was way heavier than she looked.

"I wouldn't mind playing with you sometime you know." She says, quietly still seated on a very, very angry Kanda's back.

"Get the fuck off of me." Kanda growls.

"Okay. Its not fun anymore anyway." Allen says, hopping off. Kanda sits upright and glares while rubbing his lower back.

"I'll fucking play with you if you don't tell the rabbit." He says after a few minutes of silence. Allen just grins and walks off toward the kitchen again.

The sound of music rouses Kanda out of his trance slightly, and he winces after placing the brush down. He'd been painting a lot longer then he thought apparently. The music was coming from one of the rooms off the kitchen, so he follows the soft piano.

Allen was seated on the floor, with that battered keyboard on his lap, he was playing furiously. Watching entranced, Kanda realizes he's singing too. Softly, he can barely make out the words.

_"Suspended above earth, you dream a thousand dreams, dreaming, dreaming… forever trickling down_

_On the night when silver eyes were trembling,"_ Shit. It wasn't right, she couldn't remember the other words, and she knew there were others. They came in bits and pieces, she couldn't ever remember the entire thing, and she had the feeling that she needed to.

It hurt her really, not remembering. But she guess remembering hurt more sometimes, she vaguely feels the tear sliding down her cheek.

_"Mana, where are we going next?" Allen asks, a slight frown on her face. Her arm hurt, and she wasn't in a good mood. Plus, it was pouring down rain and they had to carry their things to the next bus stop. She was cold and that just made everything worse. _

_ "Honestly Allen I don't really know, but you know the trick?" At Allen's slight shake of the head he smiles slightly and continues. "You keep walking no matter what. Sooner or later you'll get to the place you're supposed to be." _

_ The bus never came, so they stayed in a cheap motel. Then Mana looked at her, his eyes slightly sad. He took her away from that place, to a large building. "We're going to meet Neah here." He had said, looking around at the crumbling walls. _

_ But Neah wasn't there. He wasn't and then neither was Mana. Then Allen was all alone, and she could feel her world shatter more than it already had before. That's when she realized there was more than one of her inside, when there would be times she couldn't remember anything. Cross would scream at her for drinking his booze but she never even touched the bottle. _

_She'd get in trouble, once a man stopped her because he said she had mugged him and he wanted his money back. She'd been able to fight to get away, not before being shown a picture of her in the act. She couldn't remember though, she couldn't remember at all and it was scaring the shit out of her since she had lost all control. _

_ She learned then, in those horrible dreary days with Cross, how to manage her mind place. She found doors deep inside she couldn't unlock, and then she went and put some things that hurt a lot behind different locks. She made a different room for each of her other selves, and a common place between. It seemed to help a little with the remembering, most of the time anyway. _

Wiping the tear away quickly she glances up, only to find Kanda staring at her with an unreadable expression.

He doesn't say anything though, just shaking his head slightly before leaving the doorway.

* * *

Short chapter chapter is short. Goodness, more things to come with a time skip. I just thought fighting Kanda/Allen is cute and stuff. Also, reviews. I feed upon them, they are vital- VITAL i tell you in motivating me into updating on time.

okie dokie, I'll stop now

Aariah out~


	8. Chapter 8

That night they played, Kanda with his old, worn but extremely well cared for violin and Allen with her beat up keyboard. Both of them bickering back and forth, on the song, who would start first. The list really was endless, but they meshed. They both knew it, and on some levels it was liberating and on others infuriating.

"Hey Lavi, what'd you think those are doing?" Lenalee asks, lying on the couch in Kanda and Lavi's living room.

"Dunno." Lavi says, voice lazy. Lena was currently using his lap as a footrest, not that Lavi really cared. He was too tired, and he was trying to catch the slight tune that managed to drift down the empty street.

"What's that coming from?" Lena asks quietly, the music had grown slightly louder.

"Probably them. Yuu hasn't played in years though." Lavi says, wondering. Not that Kanda knew he knew about Kanda playing the violin. Of course Lavi knew, Kanda was an idiot. But this was the first time in a long time he'd actually heard the man play.

"So what'd you think of her?" Lenalee mumbles sleepily.

"Dunno. She's like a cat I guess. Sorta like Yuu, but she has more secrets." Lavi replies.

"So you've noticed it too…" Lena trails off, she thinks a moment before speaking again. "She's really like a sister to me. A few years ago I was stupid, went to a party and got wasted. Bad situation all around, some guys had taken me to the back. They'd slipped something in my cup. Then Allen walks in, lips all tight and giving off the scariest vibe I've ever felt. She went and punched each of them so hard they were spitting up blood. I couldn't move, but I saw it all." Lavi realizes Lena's crying, a far off look on her face. "Then she went, fixed my clothes and picked me up. Took me to her place until morning."

Lenalee lets Lavi bring her up and hold her. She kept crying though. Lavi didn't particularly blame her. He just kept rubbing circles into her back, until she fell fast asleep.

Three Weeks Later.

"Hm cutie, what's your name?" A dark haired man asked her, leaning against the wall of a building. Kanda beside her lets off a glare that probably should have put the guy off, but it somehow doesn't.

Allen just ignores him, until he steps in her path. Towering over her he was certainly intimidating, not that Allen particularly cared, she'd learned over the years that intimidating didn't necessarily mean dangerous or a threat.

"You look familiar, so what is it?" His voice is sickenly sweet, and rings something in Allen's head. He runs a finger through her hair and down to her cheek, and for some reason she couldn't muster the ability to move. Every fiber of her being was panicking though, in that awful way that leaves you incapable of thinking even.

"Fuck off and leave the guy alone." Kanda steps in, forcing himself in front of Allen. She could have kissed him, seriously. He may be a jerk but he wasn't that cruel apparently to leave her like that.

"Oh and may I ask why you care?" The man raises an eyebrow, smirking. He runs a hand through his curly hair, making it stick up slightly.

"Che. Does it fucking matter? Leave. Him. Alone." Kanda glares, and grabbing Allen's arm pulls him away down the alleyway.

The man calls out after them. "I remember now, number fourteen wasn't it? You look way different now; the Earl's been lookin' for you too." His words make Allen pale. That voice, that number- she didn't know but it scared her witless.

After making Kanda stop, (he complained of course, but didn't put up too much of a fight.) Allen composes herself. She couldn't loose it now, they had an exorcism to take care of and she had a Kanda to train. Pushing back the waves of nausea she finally is able to bring herself to her feet, the melody of her song running through her mind- soothing her.

Kanda just watched Allen regain his bearings, wondering just what about that asshole's words had set him off. And it made Kanda wonder, number 14, Earl? Just what was the fucker talking about? He resists the urge to run away, until the fucking beansprout stopped shaking, it was hard though, he looked so vulnerable, like he could shatter at any moment and it fucking scared Kanda to death.

Tyki Mikk was in a rather good mood, not that he'd tell the Earl who he just saw. God, the last time he had seen the girl was after he was combing a city for her after she ran, he'd let her go because he had a soft spot for the kid.

She really did look different now, not that it was a bad thing. Apparently she was passing off as male from what Tyki could see, and that one guy who got in between them had no idea most likely. Not that he exactly blamed Maria, he couldn't really.

If he'd run when he had the choice he'd be dead of old age right now and probably happy. But he hadn't, and here he was stuck in a limbo of time, stuck with no real way out. Hanging onto his humanity got harder and harder with each day, but somehow he still clung on stubbornly.

Her hair had also changed into a startling white, which was good in a way- another identifier gone. The only reason he'd been able to recognize her in the first place was because of her eyes. Those startling silver grey eyes that the Earl searched the world over for constantly, those eyes he remembered from when she was a girl. Full of fire and ice, secrets- and entirely too stubborn.

"First, set the barrier." Allen commands, watching as Kanda activated Mugen. She'd already activated her innocence and was running him through this for training. Komui flew them to a city in the next state over, to take care of an akuma that had shown up around a month ago.

"Che." Kanda sets the barrier, muttering the phrases Allen had had him memorize. The whole thing clicked into place and he nearly smiled out of relief since it took a lot more than he had thought it would, he held it in though. He didn't smile.

He was actually frightened, on many levels. He can't help but remember just how his parents died, and Allen lying in a pool of his own blood on the floor. Fear was stupid though, it made you do stupid shit. So Kanda decides to convert that energy into anger, his trusted and well known friend.

Allen nods at Kanda, a slight smile on his face and leads Kanda into the building. His eye, the one on the side with the scar, it started glowing slightly with a red light. Allen just raises a hand to his lip to shush him before Kanda could come up with a retort and scans the room, and points to a far corner.  
"My eye detects the akuma in their ethereal form. That's why its glowing." She whispers to Kanda, crouching on the smooth concrete floor. She had managed to completely block out the panic from before, smothering it in her song. Allen knew it wasn't exactly a good thing, she'd pay dearly one day or another- but not today.

"Che. What next?" Kanda growls, staring intently at the corner Allen had pointed to. He had done well with the barrier, it was a difficult spell that took a lot of concentration, she probably should have told him beforehand. She didn't though, because mainly Kanda deserved to find it out the hard way and he had annoyed the hell out of her on the plane. Fucking flicking bits of paper at her head? Not cool.

"Bring it out. And perform the exorcism of course." Allen sits back on her heels, smiling smugly. Kanda just glares at her before standing and collecting himself. He'd have to go through a few passages and such, this lower level was good practice for someone just getting into the field.

Shit, something was wrong. Her eye stung with the intensity of the akuma, and she swears internally. It was higher level than she thought, she couldn't let Kanda go out like that! Bloody fucking hell on ice. "Kanda move!" She screams while pushing him to the floor, blasting several bullets from her innocence at the forming figure after a well controlled roll.

This one was different than the last, and apparently more cunning seeing as it was disguising itself so well. Kanda just stares at her; she can feel his eyes on her back.

Beansprout had pushed him onto the floor, and frankly he was furious until he saw the forming figure she was shooting at. It was horrible, impossibly tall with claws and fangs and horns, pulling himself to his feet he brings out Mugen, and calls on the innocence, reasoning with it to do what he wanted.

And then he jumped, slashing. The… Thing screamed, "Kanda don't listen to what its saying remember!" Allen calls out, breaking his mind from the words of the akuma which had almost ensnared him. Rolling away he gives Allen an opening again, and she shoots rapidly, moving fast- no wonder she'd been trying to get him to go faster when they sparred. Faster she had said, you have to get faster.  
It was too fast though, dodging each of her glowing bullets. Kanda curses and readies Mugen, watching the thing's movement patterns.

"Danjal, desino!" A man shouts harshly, with a shock Allen recognizes him, he was the man from earlier. The akuma stopped, completely still.

"Oh, so you became an exorcist eh? You shouldn't have come here you know. Last time you pulled this your poor father died, remember?" Tyki says, striding into the building. "Or do you not remember? In any case, I am Tyki Mikk; I didn't expect to see you again so soon."

Tyki waves for Allen to approach him. So she does, since she had the sinking feeling he'd release the akuma again if she didn't.

"What the fuck was I supposed to do Kanda!" Allen yells, she was so utterly done with everything. She was tired and bleeding, and had more than enough things she'd rather not remember thrown in her face.

"I don't fucking know idiot- figure it out! You don't fucking make deals with them!" Kanda yells back.

"Oh well sorry for saving your stupid prick of an ass," Curtsying mockingly Allen continues, "Mistress Kanda, of course I will remember the fucking tea next time." Raising herself to her full 5 feet 7 inches she stands a bit below Kanda, but she manages to be intimidating. "Tyki Mikk offered to save our asses. I accepted." That's all Allen says, her eyes stinging she stalks off, out of the hotel room and into the dark streets.  
She needed to get drunk. Roaring fucking drunk, as much as she despised the stuff- as long as it wasn't wine she was fine though. She manages to pass off for 21 in the liquor store, beforehand she'd picked up a thing of diet root beer. Haha, vodka and root beer, wouldn't Cross be so fucking proud. He was a wine person though, drank for taste.

She doesn't particularly care about Kanda anymore, so she heads back to the hotel.

"What the fuck are you doing beansprout?" Kanda asks, finally getting out of the shower. Allen was apparently drinking something out of a cup, leaned up against his twin bed.

"Drinking. What the fuck does it look like." Allen says, swirling the half empty cup idly. She takes another large gulp, and doesn't even wince as the alcohol burns its way down her throat.

"Idiot." Kanda mutters, sitting on his bed. He holds a hand out for a cup though, so Allen pulls out another cup and mixes him up one. He drinks it quickly, and sputters. But he composes himself and takes another sip, slowly this time.  
Allen can't help herself, she laughs. She laughs and laughs, letting out all the pent up energy. She can't really see it, but Kanda just smirks softly.

* * *

pssssssst, review. it makes aariah super super happy and she hasn't been doing too well lately. okie dokie

Aariah out.


	9. Chapter 9

_Sorry guys this was a day late, I wasn't in a good mental place this week. To clarify for some people Allen's appearance is COMPLETELY androgynous, she allows people to simply assume that she is male and lets them run with that._

_She isn't trans, as much as I'd love to write a trans character I don't want to touch something of which I have no experience. I don't want to get something wrong, like a bunch of white writers do with writing POC. Its not my place to do that. So no, she isn't trans at all. _

_Also, this chapter has some pretty heavy content, so be wary okay? I'll do a short summery at the end for you guys in case you need to skip a part. _

* * *

"It was really kinda odd, like really." Allen laughs, her accent slipping back into her regular speech. Kanda glances over at her, and she laughs again. She had stopped drinking a bit back, instead opting for water, mainly because she knew she was at her limit and disliked hangovers.

"Mana just gave me a keyboard, told me to play. Everything clicked if that makes any sense, God it was wonderful. Mana took me back and made me learn from the beginnin' though." She continues.  
"Yeah…" Kanda mutters, nodding and still sporting that odd grin. Then he went limp, passing out- thankfully on his bed. Allen brings herself to her feet, shakily but she manages to not fall over, which was something that she really wasn't quite expecting. She takes the three steps to Kanda's bed, and manages to pull the blanket over him, and turn him to his side in case he vomited.

Then she collapses in her own bed, exhausted, tired of everything. The darkness of sleep claimed her soon, and she gave in without a fight.

* * *

"Road, access the fourteenth." The Earl commands, he was sure she was still somewhere out there, that odd girl. And he needed to know just where she was.

"Sure, what'd you want me to do though?" Road asks, her attention on the candy scattered in her lap. Life's been boring, they gave up on those little kiddies and now she didn't have anything to do. It was a pain, being bored. She wanted to have a toy to play.

"Anything you'd like to do, just don't kill her." The Earl smiles eerily, he was rather upset at the moment. Tyki had failed, the akuma was gone- the Earl could feel this two thousand miles away. He'd have some sharp words to share with Tyki-pet, oh yes he would. Children who disobey must be punished.

"Sure, can't access her location ya know." Road says, grinning. This was going to be so much fun.

* * *

No. No this couldn't be happening- Allen thinks frantically, turning around what she knew was her dream world- she knew because she created it. She made it to escape; now she wasn't safe even here.

The woman, no girl- she walked towards her, a grin on her face. Her short black hair was spiked, her dress short- the only thing that really stuck in Allen's mind was how childish she seemed, like she'd throw a fit when it suited her. She snapped her fingers, and everything glimmers, and Allen feels like she is suffocating. God, her nightmares, they climbed out of the framework of her mind. She runs she has to run; she couldn't face this she couldn't.

"Allen, you killed me!" Mana screams, his body bleeding and in pieces, he was missing half his face, his arms were gone too. But he walked to her, next to Daisya. Daisya, how could she have forgotten him? That man who died because of her, when she didn't warn him of that akuma. She lived of course, that was her curse apparently.

Everything was dark, the corridors empty and the floor uneven. Each akuma she ever faced crawled out of the cold stone walls, she fights back a scream. They were so horrible, all of them. They were her. They weren't, they were all apart of her now, because she killed them all.

Allen Walker finally realizes something that shakes her world apart. These akuma, she killed them all. But that was impossible, or that is what everyone told her. But their dying screams should've told her otherwise, they never had resisted that so much when she watched Cross, Lena or Daisya, only her. Only her did they scream for with that wild look in their eyes, piercing her heart in their pain. She killed them, they were evil but she killed them.

Did it make it right? Or was she still wrong, she falls to her knees. It was too much, all the emotions of everything that surrounded her, the demons, Mana, Daisya, even a few humans she couldn't recognize, they all flowed into her. She was ripping apart, she finally lets a blood curdling scream tear itself out of her throat. She killed them, she killed them, that was the only thought that ran through her head as she let her tears run freely from her fingers.

"Ey, you there. Why are ya crying?" The girl from earlier says, but Allen can't see her. All she sees are the figures surrounding her. "Ah I see, ya killed em all right?" The girl giggles, and Allen sees her, hovering about the rows and rows of akuma and humans.

"I didn't mean to!" Allen screams out, she didn't mean for them to die. She didn't.

"Haha, of course you didn't silly. But you did." The girl says, grinning widely. "How'd ya like it if I give you a bit of your own medicine eh?" And the girl snaps again. Suddenly a baby was crying, at the far end of the dreamland. Allen struggles to her feet, a baby?

Then it hits her, as she runs towards it. The baby was her. "I'm Road." The girl says, her voice echoing. "It's been so boring, I think this is the perfect time for a game."

"What?" Allen says, puzzled. Then it hits her, as the first drop of molten wax falls upon the baby's naked skin. She screams, and Allen feels tears fall from her eyes in a greater number than before.  
"So are you feeling it now?" Road says, as she hops to the ground. She walks toward Allen, who was frozen. "Its your fault you know." She whispers to her, and the last strand snaps. Screaming Allen runs to the baby, even as she got farther and farther away. She kept running though, she had to save the baby at least, she had to save something!

But the baby screams again, a candle protruding through its chest. Screaming, Allen runs faster, faster than she ever has before. She's too late though, the little child dies in her arms. Allen looks at her, the little baby in her arms. To her surprise the little girl's arm wasn't deformed in the least. It was only composed of pale creamy skin, her hair was the same red brown hair Allen remembered.

Suddenly, her heart beats again. Gasping the little girl opens her eyes, the same odd gray silver eyes that Allen had carried her entire life. She giggles, grabbing at Allen's hair. Then, to Allen's surprise the little girl speaks. "It wasn't our fault." She gurgles, before disappearing, with her leave the dark emptiness also dissipates, the akuma and humans also taking their leave.

"It wasn't our fault?" Allen murmurs softly, watching as the darkness gave way. It reminded her of stars, the silver falling from the sky of her mind. She stands, still crying she looks around slowly. There's a fire a ways off, so she makes her way there. Sitting in the soft grass next to the warmth she allows her dreaming self to sleep, to forget and heal. It all had a sense of finality of it.

* * *

"Fucking beansprout wake up!" Kanda yells, shaking Allen's body roughly. The fucking man had been screaming for the past three hours, and Kanda couldn't wake him no matter how hard he tried. His head was killing him, the light coming from the window hurt but he couldn't make the damn man stop.

Suddenly the beansprout jolts sharply, sitting up. To Kanda's surprise he starts crying, and stumbles to his feet, toward the hotel room's bathroom.

She couldn't remember anything, the deal she knew she made yesterday with Tyki Mikk, the dream from last night that she knew was important. She couldn't remember and it scared her. Staring in the mirror she roughly turns on the faucet and scrubs her face as hard as she could bear, no this wasn't working but she didn't care. She felt so dirty, every part of her.

She heard Kanda banging on the door, and she ignores him, continuing to scrub until she started to bleed again, as she was being so rough that her healing skin tore away. Then Kanda manages to get the door open, and grabs Allen's hand, stopping her. "Fucking idiot. What are you doing?" Kanda says, looking at her directly with hard eyes. "What do you fucking think this will do?" He yells, roughly shaking her bleeding hand in her face.

"What difference will this make?" He says, quietly. Suddenly he removes his shirt, and points to his body. "It doesn't fucking do anything." He says, softly tracing over various scars that lined his torso and arms, all the way up his shoulders.

Allen stares, and suddenly she understands. The burns, the scars, they weren't accidental. Kanda's face betrayed the fact that they weren't.

"I'm fucked up eh?" Kanda muses, his eyes growing slightly softer. "You drive me insane you know. Absolutely insane. You have the same fucking darkness but you still smile, and I fucking know its fake." Kanda says, making Allen pause.

"What do you know." She says, her voice growing hard.

"I know that you are a fucking beansprout, I know that you've gone through shit and I know you are dead on the inside. Just like me." Kanda says, before shrugging his shirt back on.

* * *

They ignored each other on the plane, not that Kanda minded. He was still thinking, thinking about the things that Allen had been screaming, things about killing them, it being his fault. And Allen's screams in themselves, horrible, horrible screaming.

He had had to break the lock, he'd slipped some extra to the hotel staff when he signed them out. He had shown him the scars lining his upper body, and he didn't think he'd ever forget the look in Allen's eyes that moment. He knew he wouldn't see it again any time soon, the barriers all let down. His actual self, and nothing else.

Why had Allen Walker made that deal with that man, giving up his pack of cards? And why had Tyki Mikk accepted them?

"The Noah are back Komui." Allen states, she and Kanda were in for the regular report after a mission. "We met one, Tyki Mikk. The akuma there was also a level 3 at least, probably stronger." Allen rubs her hands against her pants, a action rendered useless by her gloves.

"This is troubling." Komui says, rummaging through a stack of papers. "There has been an increase of strong akuma of late, I can't seem to make out what they are planning. We don't even know as much as we'd like about them, they are a wild card you could say." He says pointedly, Allen squirms slightly, she knew exactly what he was referring to.

She and Kanda had decided not to say anything about her little deal, she missed the pack of cards through, Kanda had reminded her sharply a few hours before that she had given them up. She couldn't shake the feeling that there was something else, something important she was missing.

"We encountered the Noah before the akuma Komui. He acted like he knew me, I don't remember him at all though." Allen says, Kanda doesn't mention the fact that Allen had fell apart slightly after that encounter, and the things that Tyki had said to him.

Then again, Tyki himself annoyed the hell out of Kanda more than anyone but the beansprout. There was something slippery about him, and Kanda had the inkling that he would do whatever it took to meet his ends. It reminded Kanda of a poisonous snake, squeezing where no one else could and striking when it was least expected.

"Thank you Allen for telling me, say, do you know anything more about your past?" Komui asks.

"No. Before I met Mana it's a blur." Allen says, his voice stony.

"Okay, just thought I'd try. I've been trying to find you, to try to answer questions. Allen, its like you don't even exist you know. It worries me, you say you were living on the street for a period of time in London was it? I checked all the deaths of possible parents, but there was nothing that could be you, all the children were accounted for." Komui says, his eyes unreadable behind his glasses. "I suggest you try to figure this out Allen, we haven't heard from Cross in quite a while, and he is the only person that might know anything."

"Understood Komui." Allen says, trying to mask her worry. Of course they wouldn't find her, she didn't really exist apparently. She had slipped through the cracks, living on the streets of London, a place that wasn't even supposed to have street rats. The government liked to think of it as much, but they still had existed.

They had slipped through the official's hands, not landing in any sort of foster care or anything. They were ignored, Allen remembered many of them were kids who weren't white, people the grown ups didn't give a shit about. They weren't human apparently.

So they had been forgotten, treated like animals wherever they went. They didn't exist, of course Komui hadn't been able to find anything. Of course he hadn't.

* * *

"Earl, she kicked me out." Road says, rubbing her head. God that had hurt, and it was a first for her.

"What do you mean Road?" The Earl asks.

"I mean I was able to get in, I was able to mess with her- but then she kicked me out of her head." Road states, pronouncing each word slowly and clearly. She really needed to sleep this off, she was entirely drained, not an ounce of power left in her.

"Thank you Road dear, I had expected as much. The fourteenth will wake soon." The Earl muses.

* * *

_Okie dokie guys, so summery as promised. Basically Road hacked into Allen's dreams, she messed with Allen a ton, before Allen manages to get to her younger self. Shit goes down and Road is kicked out. Also, Kanda manages to wake Allen up, she freaks and ends up hurting herself, Kanda shows her some healed over scars from self harm.  
_

_Please review, this has been sorta hard for me to write. _

_Each and every notification I get for this story makes me smile, I really appreciate you all for reading this_

_Aariah out~_


	10. Chapter 10

"Lena, I worry about her." Komui says, his voice rather muffled since he had thought it a good idea to use his desk as a pillow.

"We all do brother." Lenalee replies from her spot near the door.

"Keep an eye on her will you? I have this odd feeling she'll disappear." Komui says.

"Faster damn it!" Allen yells, ducking under Kanda's katana. She was pushing herself too hard, and she knew it. Forever forcing her innocence to more fully meld with her, it was wearing on her. She had to be better, she had to be. She had nothing else but fighting.

"Fuck you." Kanda mutters, but he picks up the pace. The exercise was something he and Allen had come up with, Allen dancing around the blade in a predetermined pattern, and Kanda fighting. It was a good exercise all told, Allen forcing themselves to be faster and more agile and Kanda practicing with his innocence.

Then, Allen stumbles. Kanda stops short, Mugen's edge right at Allen's throat. It surprised him really, Allen wasn't someone who stumbles, he wasn't someone who really showed weakness. Like Kanda, and that was part of what annoyed Kanda, as he got to know the man better. He was the same, had that same darkness, though Allen's was noticeably worse. But Allen never showed that weakness, smiling still in a picture of innocence.

Allen looks down at the blade, grimacing slightly. "I think its time we stopped. Tea?"

Kanda nods, and deactivates Mugen. They climb up the stairs to the kitchen, where Allen puts the kettle on the stove.

Allen knew exactly how Kanda liked his tea, being that she made it every single weekday when he stopped by the café. One spoon of sugar in green tea. She hands the teacup over to Kanda, who was sitting at the table. Then she made her own, Earl Grey with two spoons of honey.

"I have to go out later on. Ask Lavi if he'd like to come along please?" Allen says after a while, sipping her tea silently.

"Why should I?" Kanda growls out.

"Because Lenalee said I wasn't allowed to go gambling anymore alone. And you're too much of a jerk to take with." Allen smirks faintly, she knew this would just egg Kanda on. And frankly, even if Kanda was a jerk he was trustworthy.

"And you really think it's a good idea to take the fucking rabbit?" Kanda says in disbelief. Frankly Lavi was the last person you wanted around in that sort of situation if something happened.

"I can't exactly take you can I?" Allen says, feigning annoyance.

"Fine. I'll fucking go with you." Kanda growls out after a while. "Where exactly are you going anyway?"

"Eh, it's a different place than last time, so don't worry. Gotta take a break from that place for a bit." Allen admits, she had tried going back but apparently some people held a grudge for a while. "Make sure you wear something nice though."

So this was the kind of place Beansprout was going to. Speaking of the beansprout, he was dressed infuriatingly nice. Kanda had just put on his suit, the one his parents forced him into when they wanted him to come along to one of their parties.

But Allen, apparently beansprout was fabulous at this sort of thing. Gloves, vest, jacket- the works. He had braided that white hair of his neatly, in what Kanda thought was called a French braid? He didn't know, he wasn't a chick and it wasn't his deal. And frankly, Kanda was jealous. Even though he'd never admit it. He just glared at everyone, walking a few steps behind the beansprout, who managed to give off the air that he belonged here. No one questioned him at all.

He strides to the tables where several games of poker were being played. Allen and Kanda had already talked this through; Kanda was to stay out of the way unless the beansprout needed him. Kanda was fine with this arrangement, he wasn't too fond of places like this, full of wealthy people with too much cash to spend and waste. He takes a place by the wall, close enough to the tables to see but far enough where he wasn't considered a spectator.

He watches Allen's hands carefully, and notes that the beansprout was in fact cheating. He was good at it though, Kanda only caught it because he was used to the guy's quick movements. Kanda didn't really understand how the beansprout was able to keep those cards up his sleeve without them falling out.

There, the signal. Someone was getting mad, Kanda walks up and starts yelling at Allen, who had already collected his earnings. Kanda sees the problem, an overweight man with ugly scowl on his face who was talking to some people standing behind him. Allen tucks the money away, and Kanda throws the first punch.

He misses of course, but it didn't exactly look that way. A guard quickly drags them apart and throws both of them on the street. Allen grins widely. Kanda, having not been able to actually punch him earlier takes his chance now, a solid hit to the chest.

This leads to an actual brawl on the sidewalk, and since they were actually rather evenly matched there wasn't a clear winner when Allen finally managed to squirm her way from under Kanda. "Fuck you too." She says, slightly amused. He'd handled the club well, but honestly the man who'd tried to start a scene worried her.

She wasn't sure if he'd try to come after her or not, she'd gotten a good fifteen grand off him, too. It'd be a shame to lose it considering she had sharks to pay off. She walks gingerly to the car they had parked a few blocks away, Kanda following a ways behind her. They had to be careful; if they saw the two of them together someone might figure something out.

She was a few steps from the car when a hand covered her mouth. Oh. So she was right. Something cold against her head makes her want to roll her eyes. A gun, really? So the guy had been pretty important, to have underlings willing to go after card players who won too much with a gun.

Kanda, about twenty feet away was in a similar situation, and when Allen manages to squirm out of the man's grasp and disarm him (stupid man didn't even have the gun loaded, thought the threat of it would be enough.) he was already free, his assaulter unconscious on the ground.

They both get into the car, Kanda driving and Allen laughing wildly. "I knew the guy was a prick, didn't know he was that stuck up though." She gasps out between laughs. The adrenalin from it all was really affecting her, she somehow loved the high though.

Kanda was angry, mainly at the beansprout and the fact that he was laughing. "What the fuck was that?" He growls out, in reference to the gun.

"Oh. It wasn't loaded." Allen says, his voice calm.

"Fuck you." Kanda grumbles, he didn't exactly want to admit he had been worried in that split second the gun was against Allen's head.

Allen shrugs, and sits back in the seat, looking out the window. Somehow he ends up asleep by the time Kanda pulls into his driveway. Not wanting to deal with him anymore, Kanda just scoops beansprout up and carries him inside, dumping him on his bed unceremoniously. He looked like an angel, his white hair mussed and eyes closed. Most of all he looked innocent, in the way he didn't when his eyes were open. On some impulse Kanda sets a soft kiss on his forehead before walking out to sleep on the couch.

She could smell the sweet smoke from the fire nearby, opening her eyes slightly she finds it had burned down to glowing embers. Sitting she tucks her knees in, wrapping her arms around them and settling her head atop them.

The embers start flaring slightly, and Allen sees Mana. He was smiling at her, the way he used to when they had enough money for ice cream. Then the face morphs, into a couple she didn't quite recognize but she felt she should. The woman with her ginger hair, and the man with his dark brown- both were smiling at her, their eyes kind and loving.

"Allen. Its almost time to wake up dear." A voice calls out, echoing though the whole of her dreamland deep into her bones. She glances over at the horizon, and is startled by the slight reddening, false dawn.

She woke in the morning uncomfortable. She had apparently been dumped onto her bed fully clothed, she even had her boots on. Groaning she winces as she opens her eyes, the night before rushing back. Hurriedly she pats down her jacket, and sighs with relief when she feels the thick fold of bills.

Removing her clothing she walks to the bathroom in her towel, and lets it fall as she stares at herself in the mirror. It was disgusting really, all her scars. A particularly large one going from her shoulder, in between her breasts and down to her stomach- it was ragged and difficult to look at.

There were others. Small silver indents in her skin, circular and deep. Others were just plain healed slashes. Each and every one would ache on a rainy day, especially the large one. She learned to work through it though.

She really didn't look feminine. Not at all, all muscle and broad shoulders- like the gymnasts she'd seen on TV.

For some reason she felt tears well up in her eyes, and she steps into the shower before she lets them fall.

**Two weeks later.**

"So you want me to get Allen out of the house for the day?" Lavi asks Lenalee. The two were watching Allen and Kanda train with their innocence. Allen surprisingly kept stopping Kanda outright every five minutes or so to lecture him on not activating it on his comrades, which Kanda had been doing since he got the innocence. It was rather funny in its own way, Allen explaining to Kanda as if he was a toddler that innocence used up the bearer's own energy, parasitic innocence or crystallized- and to use it on a whim was childish. Kanda's sullen expression was also priceless in its own way, since on some level he must know that Allen was right.

"Yes, we need her out of the house so we can move in her early birthday present." Lenalee replies. Handing Lavi the book of runes that he'd have to memorize she continues, "Can't exactly move a piano in without her noticing."

"Wait, when's Allen's birthday?" Lavi flips through the book, wondering just how Lenalee and Allen had memorized all these, and this was only the beginners copy! There were apparently four other books past this, and then five more that were simply optional.

"She celebrates it on Christmas day. She doesn't actually know when her birthday is." Lenalee sighs softly, it really was a shame- she felt so bad for not being able to be with her best friend on her birthday but some things you just couldn't change.

"Why Christmas?" Lavi asks, it seemed odd to celebrate a birthday on Christmas if you didn't know when it was, most of the people he heard of in that situation just celebrated it on New Years.

"It's when she was adopted by Mana." That's all Lenalee dares say, as Allen and Kanda were walking towards them, both wearing glares toward the other person that probably would have killed anyone else they were directed to.

Allen had deactivated her innocence, which had been evolving of late. So that deformed arm of hers could transform into a gun at will, or anything else she might want. Kanda's was a katana, like Lenalee's own innocence, it was formed by the bearer's blood- thus the reason why Allen had been lecturing him constantly.

"You guys can head home now you know." Allen says softly, her eyes (which always struck Lenalee as odd, as they were a metallic silver and seemed entirely too old to possibly be a part of Allen.) failing to mask her exhaustion. She'd been working with Kanda every moment she could outside of work and her other jobs for the past three weeks and it was wearing on her, especially after that last particular mission. Lenalee felt bad, maybe it would've been better if they had switched out as planned.

"Alright Allen, don't overwork yourself K?" Lenalee gives Allen a hug, then playfully whacks the book in her hand on Kanda's head. "Allen is right about the innocence you know." Kanda just grumbles and looks away.

He was annoyed, like really annoyed at everything. And not his normal sullen annoyance at stupidity but the full out rage induced annoyance that lasted weeks. Kanda always stayed after practice. The fucking rabbit would leave, and would no doubt take Lenalee to their place and giggle with her like a pair of teenagers talking about dicks.

Allen smiles grimly and climbs up the stairs to the kitchen, waving Lenalee and Lavi off. "You want some tea?" He asks quietly once they were out of earshot. Kanda watches his face intently, not even sure why he was doing so. It was so odd, each blink of the eye he made entranced him and that only served to annoy him further.

His thoughts go back to that one kiss, on the forehead- but it was still a kiss. Why the fuck had he done that anyway? But then his thoughts carry him back to Allen's sleeping face and render him silent. Fuck the fucking beansprout. Fuck him. Kanda hated him with every fiber of his being but somehow he was still here, standing across the room from Allen.

"Tch." Allen knew him too well, the same routine after each of their practice sessions. It wasn't Kanda's fault he was completely incapable of making his own fucking tea, or making his own food besides soba for that matter. Also, Kanda would never admit it but Allen was extremely good at making said tea, Kanda sits on the couch and scoops up the cat while Allen puts the water on to boil, and takes out the delicate teacups he had insisted upon picking up at a thrift store.

Handing the steaming cup of tea to Kanda, Allen takes his own place in front of the keyboard, which he had set up on a stand. He always played after practice sessions, and well that was part of the reason Kanda tended to stay longer- he was good. And Kanda liked to play along. Today it was Pachelbel's Cannon, then Anna's Theme. Kanda takes sips of his tea in between breaks on the violin. He'd have to change out the strings soon, he'd been playing it more than he had in years. Maybe he should pick up a better pair, if only they weren't so expensive…

Kanda watches him, his head bent in concentration, every once and a while he'd take a sip from the cup on the floor. His white hair falling over his face and his eyes closed, fingers dancing across the keys. It was easy to watch, Kanda didn't need to see what he was doing to play. His fingers found their own way across the strings, his bow bending to his will. Much like Allen, Kanda knew he could play without looking, but apparently he just preferred to play like that.

Sometimes Kanda wondered if he shouldn't be a concert pianist. He was good enough, more than good enough, he supposed it must be something like his own situation with the violin though. After a while Allen stands, heads up the stairs.

Kanda opens the door of the bathroom, and really wasn't expecting Allen to be there already, naked. She (Yes she, she had a distinct lack of testicles) was covered in so many scars, more scars than he'd seen on anyone. He feels his face growing hot, god damn that fucking beansprout!  
Turning around her eyes betray her shock, then grow cold. "What the fuck are you doing here Kanda?"

* * *

Wonderful place to leave off eh? Sorry its a day late.

Haven't been in a good place of late

Aariah out


	11. Chapter 11

_Short chapter chapter is short, I'm not exactly happy with it but honestly there's not much I can do. And sorry this wasn't uploaded earlier, was being buggy I guess and wouldn't let me submit it. _

* * *

Kanda can feel his face grow red, but he couldn't really think of a valid reason, nor could he look away. He wonders how he hadn't noticed before, god she was beautiful, in that odd harsh sort of way. And God he hated her, he hated Allen with every fiber of his being. For making him feel things he didn't want to ever feel again, for making him second guess himself with every single word- for making him so angry. He hated her because she turned him into a fucking twelve year old with every word he said.

"Well can you please stop staring now? I am fully aware I have breasts and a vagina. It doesn't mean I like certain arseholes to look at them." Allen states dryly, before taking up a brush from the counter and throwing it at Kanda's head. It connects with his eye in a rather sickening sound, and Kanda lets out a string of curses. Fuck, she was screwed, Kanda saw her. Damn him!

Turning away quickly Kanda slams the door behind him, berating himself in his head. Why hadn't he known, and why the fuck was she passing as a boy. Why on earth was her body covered in so many scars? Yes she fought demons but that didn't account for the sheer number of them all. It didn't account for the circular pits engraved into her back. God fucking damn it, why does he feel so fucking awkward now?

He realizes just how easy it must have been to pass, her chest was nearly flat and she had so much muscle on her that curves were nearly nonexistent. He was so fucking stupid, stupid, stupid!

Wiping her face in the towel, she feels like breaking down and crying. Glancing back up at her reflection, she sweeps the brush over her head, smoothing her hair into a more feminine style. It didn't look right, but it was her. In a fit of frustration, she messes it up again. Getting dressed she finally goes out to the front room, where no doubt Kanda was waiting for an explanation.

"Why the fuck didn't you tell me? I don't give a fuck if you dress like a guy or not." Kanda asks, in that angry calm way.  
"What do you fucking expect Kanda, my life's been hell! Do you have any idea what I've been through, I'm not going to go and tell a douche like you. Do you know how hard smiling is sometimes, just how much I have to force myself to be optimistic? I watched Mana get eaten by a demon that had fucking come for me. Then I spent three years apprenticed to an abusive asshole that made me pay thousands and thousands to his debt collectors. Do you want to fucking know why I did it? Because being a boy is fucking safer than being a girl ever was, do you know what happens to little girls that live on the streets? They get picked up by a pedo and raped repeatedly, then dumped into the gutter. The adults didn't even care, as long as it wasn't their little girl- as long as it was the other little girl that no one cared for." Allen's words come out quickly and halfway through her voice breaks.

Kanda simply stands and lands a very well placed punch into her gut. She doesn't even flinch, nor does she attempt to dodge it. Kanda is struck again at the fact that the stomach that he had just hit was rock solid; there wasn't any fat at all. "Who the fuck are you, what the hell fucking happened to you Allen, you don't get those from fighting demons!"

Looking Kanda straight in the eye Allen clears her throat before responding. "I don't know. A lot of these I can't remember, the smaller ones. I don't know anything about myself. Since Mana died I've been trying to be like him, but I keep slipping. You keep making me slip up and I'm supposed to be walking forward but what am I walking to? All I can keep doing is smiling when all I want to do is cry." And she realizes she is actually crying, hot tears spilling down her cheeks. And Kanda is there, staring at her with that cold beautiful face of his.

"You know, you could find out if you really wanted to." That's all Kanda says before sitting on the couch and picking up Moshi.

"What do you mean? Go back to that fucking city and talk to everyone until someone remembers?" Allen asks, she really didn't understand what this man was aiming at, she didn't understand him at all. Why was he, the most pessimistic person she knew suggesting something like that?

"Yes." Kanda says.

"Are you serious." Allen asks, sitting on a table and tucking her knees into her chest.

"Che. Of course I'm fucking serious." Kanda spits out, "I wouldn't fuck suggest it if I wasn't serious."

Allen shakes her head slowly, and goes back to her keyboard in an attempt to calm down. Her song, that lullaby she played so often flew out from under her fingers. Somehow it seemed different this time, even more heart wrenching than usual. She improvises, harmonizing, adding and adding until only the underlying melody was recognizable.

Kanda didn't say anything throughout this, he just sat there with his eyes closed, trying to process everything and just listening. He wasn't a pervert, he really wasn't. He couldn't care less about the fact that he had seen beansprout naked, it was more of the fact that he wasn't really expecting anything that threw him off his guard, or at least that's what he told himself.

He decided that thinking at the present moment wasn't exactly a good idea, considering there was a very demanding cat in his lap that was demanding attention and the fact that Allen's playing was fucking amazing and if Kanda didn't pay attention he'd probably start to tear up.

_He had tried every single way he could think of to forget, to try to destroy himself. Not that he thought it was a particularly smart thing to do, it was more of the fact that there wasn't anything out there for Kanda at all, and he knew it. _

_ He was too angry, too stubborn. Self destructive and uncaring, or at least that's what other people saw. So Kanda saw it too, and he pretended it didn't hurt. _

_ "He killed that little boy." They'd whisper. But Kanda didn't. He didn't kill him damn it! _

_He remembered the first time he had met him. In that little room, waiting for their adoptive families to come. He'd smiled straight at Kanda, gapped teeth somehow charming as they were innocent. _

_ "I'm Alma!" He had said loudly, in Japanese. This had startled Kanda, everyone around them had been speaking English, and he couldn't understand anything and it was making him angry and confused. _

_ Then the other boy had tackled Kanda, which pissed him off even more. But the babbling boy didn't seem to be deterred. Even after Tiedoll had taken Kanda away they kept in touch. Or Alma attached himself to Kanda and refused to let go. _

_He'd tackle Kanda with pillows during sleepovers, screeching when a grumpy Kanda retaliated. Truthfully it was one of those friendships you didn't miss till it was gone. _

"Should we knock?" Lenalee asks, not quite sure. They'd heard the two screaming at each other from down the street and had decided to check up on things.

"Nah, just go inside. Allen doesn't care." Lavi whispers, not really caring if Allen did care or not.

So Lenalee opens the door gingerly, and just stands there in the middle of the doorway. Kanda was asleep on the couch, and Allen was nowhere to be seen. Lavi squeezes around Lena, to plop down on Kanda's stomach, which makes Kanda wake with a yell.

"WHAT THE FUCK LAVI!" Lavi hops off and sprints and somehow gets Lenalee between him and Kanda.

"Hey Yuu, where's the beansprout?" Lavi asks from his safe place behind Lenalee.

"I don't fucking know where the beansprout is. She was on the fucking keyboard." Kanda states, clearly angry. His words take both Lenalee and Lavi by surprise.

"Hey Kanda...? When did you find out?" Lenalee asks quietly, dragging Lavi into the house and closing the door behind her.

"Two hours ago. Now leave me the fuck alone." Kanda says, laying down and closing his eyes again. Then opening them again quickly with a curse, "FUCK!"

By the time they had checked all of the rooms Allen was long gone. She, being somewhat polite left a note,

_Don't worry about me,_

_I'll be back soon, take care of Moshi please, brought Tim with me._

_-Allen_

But that was all really, they tried her phone but she didn't pick up, and when Lenalee found the sim card she wasn't exactly surprised. Allen was good at this; she knew had known her long enough to be sure of it. She probably had a completely different sim to use too.

"Where did Allen go?" Lavi asks quietly, sitting at the dining room table. He didn't want to admit that he was worried, because he was. Considering how Kanda had reacted Lavi had every reason to be. Kanda didn't go tearing through a house for someone, ever.

The bus station was empty, except for a white haired person sitting on the bench. Allen didn't know why she had decided to run, "Mana I screwed up big this time didn't I?" She whispers, unaware of the man striding underneath the streetlight.

"Fancy finding you here." Tyki Mikk calls out, taking a long drag from his cigarette.

"What are you doing here?" Allen asks, more than slightly worried.

"Don't worry, no demons this time around. I just wanted to have a bit of a talk is all." Tyki says, smirking. "So I heard you were Cross's brat for a bit, that right oh Allen?"

"Yes. Why?" She answers.

"Because Cross is looking for you. So is the Earl, can't quite say why they're out lookin' but they are." Tyki drags out, a slight smirk on his face. "So I'd stay out of it if I were you." Walking over quickly he hands her a slip of paper before disappearing into the night.


End file.
